Titanfall
by Selector
Summary: A Titan fell on a worm, wait, what?
1. Chapter 1

Titanfall 1

The crappy PA system popped and hissed. Sophia looked up at the speaker in the ceiling with narrowed eyes as she backed against the wall. Guitar notes rang out. Everyone stopped and Emma backed away from where she was whispering maliciously into the louvers in Hebert's locker. "From one fight onto the next."

Sophia blinked "The fuck?"

"Two outlaws ride, their weapons flexed"

Sophia reached for her work phone. Emma looked around "What the hell? Some nerd got a hold of the PA."

"One is quick the others tall"

Greg Veder hissed "No fucking way!"

"Together they will kill them all."

Sophia pushed the panic hotkey combination on her work phone.

"Standby for Titanfall!"

Greg screamed "Run!" and took off down the hall.

Titanfall

"Colin! We have activity from the Simurgh."

Armsmaster's head snapped up from the microscope he was working under. His hands frozen by his armor, he frowned. Dragon continued "She is moving. Her projected track takes her to a geostationary orbit over Brockton Bay."

Colin blinked "She is out of sequence." His thoughts were interrupted by a red icon on his HUD. Shadow Stalker had hit her panic button. "Where is that music coming from?"

"Every speaker on every device in the city. Colin, something just appeared on NORADs radar. It's not the Simurgh. It's on a ballistic track for Brockton Bay. Refining. Colin, it's going to impact Winslow high school."

"ICBM" Colin was disengaging his hands form the delicate work he had been doing and texting all the other members of the ENE Protectorate and wards.

"No launch detected, it just appeared!"

Titanfall

Sophia looked at Madison who was pointing out the grimy window behind them. In the parking lot, some kind of finger thick blue beam of light extended from the principles car to, well, it went straight up.

Sophia hit the panic hotkeys again.

Just as she did a giant robot hit the ground, or rather principle Blackwell's leased car. A shockwave blossomed in the cold damp air. The car was a pancake. The whole building shook. The mecha stood up straight and looked around. Then it raised some kind of giant weapon and Sophia dove out of the way taking Emma and Madison to the floor. The window and wall exploded.

Titanfall

L33t, a tinker, and avid gamer, blinked at the warbling, blinking indicators and annunciators on the thing he had built to detect orbital bombardment for the Halo game they had run. His partner Uber looked at him "I thought that was dead? Why did you even build it, it was just a prop, we could have just spray painted a tool chest and put some lights on it."

L33t glared at his partner then tossed a ball out the window, oddly, instead of dropping to the ground, it took off. The pair watched a video monitor. L33t gasped "No fucking way! That game is in beta!"

Uber grunted "Fuck that, someone is stealing our gig man! Turn off the music and gear up!"

"I thought the music was you?"

Titanfall

Sophia watched, scrambling away in a crab crawl, as the mecha walked up to the building, reached in the hole it had blasted in the second story, after crouching, and ripped the front off of the whole row of lockers. It caught Hebert as she fell out of the locker and grimly announced "I will not lose another pilot!" Withdrawing its hand it strode off in the direction of downtown.

Sophia's phone rang.

Titanfall

The students of Arcadia high school stood around outside. They always did as Arcadia had a signal suppressor and no one got phone reception inside.

Idiots claimed it was a faraday cage, you can't turn a faraday cage off, like the signal suppressor was between classes or during lunch and sporting events, as it is a grounded copper mesh with holes a quarter inch or smaller in diameter built into a building to include covering the windows or any gap larger than a quarter inch.

One of the students had clued them in to something happening, as a second clue, the music from their cell phones, tablets and computers was the first, and they were all watching Uber and L33t's live feed once the first one announced it had something on it.

Amy Dallon looked up and in the distance saw the smoke rising over where she thought Winslow was. They could hear the sirens starting from the much closer Brockton Bay Memorial hospital. Amy was a, perhaps the, Healer. "Vicky, take me to the hospital. I'll call Carol."

Vicky looked around, but her boyfriend Dean was already running toward the gate of the school grounds. She lifted her sister and took off. The students who had seen Vicky Dallon, Glory Girl, do this before paid scant attention. Watching a giant mecha move through the streets of Brockton Bay was much more interesting.

One of the students realized something "Hey! It's heading this way!" A teacher appeared at that moment and ordered them inside and to their shelter in place locations.

Titanfall

Sophia hung up the phone and headed for her gym locker as the PA sang while drums came in on the music "Bang bang, they shot them down, bang bang, they hit the ground, bang bang, they torched the rest, bang bang, with lasers from their chest."

Sophia growled "Oh fucking hell no they don't!"

"Sophia, Veder knows something!" Emma declared, trotting beside her friend. Madison had taken off somewhere.

"Find him."

The PA kept singing "Bang bang, their kill counts rise, bang bang, their enemies die, bang bang, better hit the ground, bang bang, here's the rocket sound."

Sophia open her mouth then squatted at the hissing roar, and seconds later, tremendous, nearly subsonic, boom that shook the building. The PA sang on "Bang bang, two legends one legacy, bang bang, surrounded by enemies, bang bang, go ahead and cry, bang bang, you're all about to die." Sophia glared as a stupendously loud, stuttering, ripping, sound shook the building.

Sophia looked at her phone "Well fuck. Hebert's mecha is tearing the ass out of the Empires capes. Storm Tiger is down, Cricket as well. Hookwolf is getting shot to pieces."

Emma looked around to say something as Sophia yanked on her costume and stood, mouth open as the Endbringer sirens began to wail.

AN: OK this had some attention from the muse. By the way this prologue came out of my Vermicast plot bunny pen. So, the song belongs to EA, as does the game. Worm belongs to Wildbow of course.


	2. Chapter 2

Titanfall 2

"Colin, my systems are being probed for information. The internet is being slowed. It's like someone is downloading it, all of it."

"Console this is Armsmaster, I am two minutes out."

"Armsmaster, Console, establish the inner perimeter. PRT is establishing a cordon with the BBPD."

"Armsmaster, Fury." The Director of the PRT East North East, call sign Fury from her days in the line, came on the net "We don't have time for this mecha, we are prepping for the Simurgh. Pattern analysis suggest it is only engaging people who engage it. The geometries of fire it uses are clear of civilians."

"Set the perimeter, evacuate the civilians and then hand off to the strike team leader onsite. She will take over and keep the cordon up and the mecha under observation. Once you have done that get yourself and your team to the rally point. Fury out."

Titanfall

Lung stood on the roof of a building at the edge of his territory, with Bakuda and Oni Lee, the other parahuman members of his gang, the Asian Bad Boyz or ABB, watching the fight between the mecha, Hookwolf, and now the giant Valkyrie twins, Cricket and Storm Tiger had been taken out early. "It is fast, and skilled."

Bakuda nodded "Storm Tiger and Cricket got swatted like flies. Hookwolf hasn't even scratched it. That metal must be some really exotic alloy. Those spindly legs shouldn't be able to hold up the weight that much power generation would require, even with a null grav generator. A ZPM maybe?"

Lung nodded "It reportedly fell from orbit."

Bakuda whistled lowly. "A really exotic alloy. Null Grav for sure. Some kind of retro thruster as well. Hella energy generation. Might be dangerous for humans to be near it. Some tinkers never learn about radiation."

Lung nodded "Oni Lee, you will go to the rally point and return with more information on why the Endbringer sirens are sounding. Bakuda you will study this mecha. Get closer." Oni Lee dropped in a cloud of ash. Bakuda swallowed, looked around fearfully and then left when Lung growled. Lung got out his phone "Gather those who were at Winslow. I wish to speak to them."

Titanfall

Kaiser watched as first Menja then Fenja were chopped up with a sword. A sword that matched the mecha's size but was like a katana in form factor. They shrank on the ground and he waved Victor forward "Recover Fenja and Menja, get them to Othala. Check Storm Tiger and Cricket, get them to Othala if they are alive. Then get to the shelter. We will regroup there then go to the rally point. This new tinker is in violation of the Endbringer truce." Viktor darted away, the invulnerability granted by Othala allowing him to dance across the square they were fighting in.

"Hookwolf is the one violating the truce. And he attacked that mecha without provocation." Kreig arched a brow at Kaiser.

Kaiser nodded "But those are the facts. Facts which can be twisted. They will have to be to keep Bradley from getting a kill order." Bradley was Hookwolf in his civilian ID.

Kreig nodded. "Storm Tiger and Cricket are a significant loss for Bradley's faction. One that balances Purity's departure."

The pair stopped talking as Hookwolf, grown huge, covered in spinning blades and hooks, ran and leapt at the mecha. It caught him on the end of the Gatling type cannon it used as a primary weapon and held him overhead as it fired into his center.

Kaiser sighed "If he survived that he might learn some humility. Let it leave. Recover him, if he lived. We have bigger problems."

Titanfall

Emily Piggot, Director of the PRT ENE, Brockton Bay frowned as the speakers in the room started emitting an eerie wailing sound "A bagpipe cover of Enter Sandman? Shut that crap off! Find whoever is doing this and foam them. I want them in M&S containment now!"

The Operations officer shook his head "The speakers are unplugged. We did it when the song played for the Titan."

Emily frowned "Titan?"

The Operations officer shrugged "Someone said 'standby for Titan fall' and then it appeared on radar. Twenty six seconds later it had fallen from low orbital altitude, snatched a girl from Winslow, and left. So, Titan."

Emily frowned "So a tinker we have not seen attended Winslow high school, right under Shadow Stalker and her handler's nose. She must have triggered months ago, maybe years to have built that titan. Or she is a tinker ten, plus. We haven't seen any activity out of the normal in the scrap yard, electronics shops, or orders for materials online. She has invented a novel, exotic power source or battery of an energy density previously unknown. It has to be a generator as our monitoring hasn't turned up any unusual power usage. Get that handler in here!"

"We are working on it."

Emily nodded "Good. Status on the Simurgh?"

The Air Operations officer turned around "She has descended and increased relative velocity, holding a position above Brockton Bay in orbit, but she hasn't broken the Kaman line yet."

Emily nodded "So, we are out of the known range of the scream. Who is the tinker?"

The operations officer handed her a folder marked TS SCI (TITAN). Emily read it and shook her head. "Fucking Tinkers. So her trigger event could have been eighteen months ago. We had a high caliber tinker under our noses, possibly for eighteen months, since perhaps the middle of May two thousand eight, and now she has unleashed a killer robot.

"Get Shadow Stalker in here, in an interrogation room, with the thinkers on video, live, I want an accounting of every minute of her life since sixteen May, two thousand eight."

The operations officer shrugged "Or it could be her power armor."

"You aren't easing my mind Jorgenson."

The operations officer grinned "Bright side? She seems to be a hero and has gutted the Empire."

Emily Piggot scowled and turned to the giant screen on the wall "The Titan is headed for Brockton Bay Memorial."

A young Trooper manning a console spoke up "Ma'am, there is a game that recently beta tested. The Titan looks like a Vanguard class but it's bigger and bulkier. A lot more heat shimmer as well, if that isn't a shield. Vanguards are special operations Titans. The people who operate them, or really work with the AI's that inhabit them, are special operators, known as pilots. This one has more power too. Plus a shield, that blueish glow it made, that seems to absorb and convert attacks. Sometimes it appears to boost and return them. That's what took out Storm Tiger. His own attack was returned to him."

"An AI running a combat mecha capable of orbital insertion. Working with a special operations Operator, of unknown capability. My life is suddenly a science fiction war story. Fucking Murphy and his tinker children." Emily Piggot pinched the bridge of her nose for a moment.

"Jorgenson form a cell around this trooper. I want everything about this 'Titan' in two hours. If we have another, better, L33t on our hands this non engagement is as good a counter as we have right now. Information, then plans people. Now!"

Titanfall

Vicky looked at her phone "Fucking bagpipes? Really?" She had just landed in front of the Emergency room and set Amy on the ground. She turned around and squawked then darted to where Amy was standing in front of the mecha as it rummaged around its insides through the door, really the front half of its cockpit, it had opened up. Vicky watched as two nurses pushed a gurney up and the mecha deposited a girl on it. Amy grabbed the girl's hand. She rattled off a long list of injuries and problems. Vicky retched at the smell.

Everyone jumped when the mecha said "Will my pilot live Advocate?" Amy eeped and nodded. The Mecha seemed to sigh "Perhaps you could gift her Advocate? It seems we are surrounded by enemies here."

Amy frowned "Gift?" She produced a plain white face mask from her bag and put it on the girl the mecha had brought. The two nurses sighed, knowing they were in for another round of non-disclosure agreements.

Titanfall

Vicky trotted off to the PRT Troopers who had just screeched up and deployed from their trucks.

Strike Commander Briggs looked at Glory Girl and arched a brow "Civilian clothes Glory Girl?"

Vicky snorted "Give me a break Sarah, We were at school when the world went nuts. What's the deal with the sirens?" The sirens chose that moment to wind down into a growl and then fall silent.

Sarah Briggs looked at Vicky "The Simurgh darted over here from her normal polar orbit and is hovering over us at just over a hundred kilometers up. Apparently watching the show. She was descending. I guess she stopped, so your show is going to become the biggest deal in town soon."

Vicky snorted "Great." She turned around and looked at the spot Amy had been. The mecha had moved to a defensive position in front of the ambulance bay, and now fired several somethings straight up. She raced over to it "Hey! What are you doing?"

"Launching drones."

Sarah opened her mouth as she strode up but Glory Girl got in first with a suspicious glare on her face "What do these drones do?"

"They provide me information to facilitate my protection of my pilot."

Sarah sighed. It had been such a nice Tuesday.

Titanfall

Thomas Calvert looked at his PRT issued phone. He wasn't getting enough intelligence from his sources and every time he split the timeline the Simurgh descended and liquefied his mind. Or a giant robot dug him out of his base and stomped on his head.

He gave some direction to his reserve Strike team and then took out his civilian phone. A Dragontech duplicate of his PRT phone worked over and secured by another tinker. Not a step most people took as the phone already cost a month's apartment rent out of the box. The tinker upgrades could have bought a luxury sedan.

Across town Sarah Livsey, aka Lisa Wilbourn, AKA Tattletale, picked up her phone. "Yes boss?"

Tattletale paled as she received her instructions. She never said a word and hung up.

Titanfall

"Dragon, is the downloading of the internet still happening?"

Dragon replied over the communications gear "Yes. It has slowed, now corrections to articles are appearing. Colin, I believe this is being done by an AI."

Colin frowned "Why do you believe that? It could be a parahuman thinker."

Dragon paused then nodded in the window he had open on his HUD showing her avatar. "A thinker ten or higher, who can type thirty eight hundred words a minute or has multiple hands. A thinker ten, changer three. OK sure."

Colin sighed "A tinker ten and a thinker ten. It could be the tinker has some way to manipulate data at a high rate. Perhaps we would be better off it was an AI, or if the Simurgh descended."

Dragon smiled grimly for just a moment "Don't even joke about it. So what do we do now?"

Colin was silent for a moment "Finish preparations for the Simurgh. Hand off to Legend when he gets here. Then we will go to the hospital and examine this mecha."

Colin glared at the speaker on the wall as it began playing more music. Dragon chuckled and nodded her head along to the music "Godsmack, I stand alone. Whoever it is may be trying to send a message."

"A message that isn't good for us."

Titanfall

Glory Girl nodded to the Mecha "Nice, better than the bag pipes. Hey you got a name?"

"BT7274, you may call me BT."

"Okay, does your, erh, pilot, have a name?"

"She does."

Glory Girl arched a brow and tapped her foot, or made the motion for it as she was hovering a foot or so off the ground. "And it is?"

"The information network of this world has indicated operators identities are guarded information. We will call her Operator for now. You may call her Operator or Pilot."

Glory Girl crossed her arms "Did you tell her family where she is?"

"Ah, a good idea. Thank you."

Glory Girl face palmed. Then looked up "What is an Advocate?"

"On this world they would be called a parahuman healer. Though unlike Panacea, they do work on mental capacity as well. At least some of them do."

"So what kind of enhancements can they do?"

"What is your devices identification number? I can send you several files." Glory Girl nodded and gave him, at least from the voice it was him, both her and Panacea's number.

"You should do a wiki page, or sign up on PHO and do a page. Lots of people are going to have lots of questions."

"A good idea. My pilot's father is on his way here. He seems upset."

"Oh boy."

Sarah Briggs silently agreed, and subvocalized some orders to her troops along with a sitrep to Operations. The girl's father, Armsmaster, and Legend were apparently going to arrive near simultaneously.


	3. Chapter 3

Titanfall 3

Inside the emergency room in a trauma bay Amy, Panacea, looked at her phone as the nurses stripped and cleaned the girl. The enhancements listed, in great detail, started her tinker ability running and she was nearly drooling.

The senior nurse, satisfied with what they had done for the girl looked at Panacea "We're ready for you Panacea."

Amy stepped up and lay hands on the girl. Two nurses and an intern started recording and annotating chart pages as she talked through what she was finding.

They looked at each other as Amy first cured every problem she had so far listed, then went back and started optimizing the girl. Her tinker had internalized the enhancements from BT, and then used that along with the information from examining Taylor to set up a complete set of maxed out enhancements.

When she started armoring the girl's bones and improving her joints for G loading the head nurse picked up her phone and scrolled through the email from BT "So this is permission and a request for those enhancements the mecha talked about. Or the girl talked about through the mecha."

"There are some other things covered in the email, they are a symbiotic pair apparently. It's an AI housed in that machine. Apparently it needs its pilot though. Not least because the pilot keeps it stable." Amy supplied.

The nurse scrolled to a summary and read it. "Mentally and physically? How does a teenage girl keep an AI and a five ton tinker death machine stable?"

The intern shrugged "Tinker bullshit? Leet makes stuff blow up, this one makes it not."

The head nurse shook her head and sighed "I remember when that was all mad scientist, or super geniuses, in comic books or movies."

One of the other nurses smiled "You aren't that old Nelly. Let's hope this one isn't an evil mad scientist or super genius."

Nelly laughed "I've been working here longer than you have been alive Kate." She turned to the phone and ordered the Panacea materials, buckets of bone, muscle, fat, nerve tissue and organs, all harvested by med students, from pigs, and kept as sterile as possible.

"Thanks, no way I get this whole list done with the little body fat she had." Panacea nodded to Nelly.

The trauma, orthopedic, and neurological residents who had stepped into the bay and were looking at the data on the intern's, who was on her trauma rotation, tablet, that she had collated from the nurses, everyone's conversations, and Panaceas phone looked up. The Trauma resident spoke "Concur. This is going to be a large percentage of her body weight? You can do all this at one time Panacea?"

Amy nodded "The documentation is good, good enough to give me more than the general idea, her body is in good enough shape to do it, I can even set it low for now and she will grow. She will probably top out at Brute three or four, mover one maybe two, then whatever her tinker rating is."

The orthopedic resident snorted "Twenty five. Have you seen the death machine with the AI living in it out in the ambulance bay?"

Nelly looked up ""It's not her power armor? We didn't get any of those Empire casualties to treat."

The Neurologist shrugged "From the video's that make it onto PHO, before the mods take them down, Fenja and Menja were wounded. Storm Tiger and Cricket might have lived. I doubt it, but it's possible with parahumans, especially if they had a brute rating, Hookwolf is a paste though. Plus, they have Othala. She can grant regeneration remember. We only ever get their normal casualties, and none of them were stupid enough to get in the way. I saw Victor pick up Fenja and Menja then come back for Storm Tiger and Cricket on the TV. I didn't stay to see if they scraped up Hookwolf's remains." He held up his tablet screen out with the video, or the most complete one running, after a second or two he folded out the stand thing on it and set it on a counter. He stepped over and looked at the orthopedist resident's pad.

Amy frowned "Whoever took that video is crazy, what did they do, chase them from Winslow on a motorcycle or something? Hookwolf might have lived. He supposedly has some kind of final protection he can regenerate from, a metal ball they say. No pictures so…." She shrugged.

The Neurologist frowned "Panacea, some of these modifications involve the brain. I mean they are clean and do things we wish God or evolution had done but still?"

"I know right? But it's like a road map, recipe maybe, I don't even think she will lose memories. I think I can use these for Dad if it works out with her. Maybe cleaning it all up is what clinically depressed people need." The Neurologist looked interested.

Nelly snorted "She might wish she did, lose memories I mean. You saw and smelled her when she came in. What are kids doing these days that led to that?"

The intern supplied "PHO says someone got locked in a locker with a bunch of bio waste at Winslow and triggered. Well, it did. The mods stomped all over that. Banhammer time. Ban sledge hammer."

The younger nurse sighed "People are fucked in the head."

Titanfall

Bakuda, Alice Nakagiwa, watched the mecha and Glory Girl from the cordon the PRT had established with the rest of the gawkers. She had changed to jeans and a sweater, just another Asian girl. She also took pictures and sent text updates to Lung. She had already traveled the path the mecha had taken from Winslow, through downtown, to the hospital. It hadn't dropped a single part, even during the fight with Hookwolf. Its weapons, missiles and projectiles, were gone as well. Not picked up by the PRT, they were looking even harder than her, using lasers to show the ballistic flight paths. Nothing was at the end of those flight paths except damage. She did get samples of blood, some hair, and metal from Hookwolf's changer form though. Other samples too. "Probably enough to match all the empire capes who were injured really."

The gawker beside her nodded "Pretty much, though Kaiser and Purity didn't come out."

Bakuda blinked at the non sequitur, not realizing she had spoken her thought out loud for a moment, then snorted "He wouldn't violate the truce like Hookwolf. The other Empire capes were trying to defend him, maybe help in Storm Tiger and Crickets case." She blinked "From the video anyway. Purity does her own thing now, mostly attack Asians."

The gawker nodded. Alice watched him tapping away at his cell "Yeah, I can see that. Posting your theory on PHO?" Bakuda glared at him then softened. She had to maintain cover.

Gawker nodded "Give me a name and I will give you credit."

"Bombergirl on PHO." Alice gave up her PHO username.

A light shot across their view and stopped as Legend. He immediately put a hand to his ear. Alice put a hand on her heart "Fuck me."

The gawker sighed "So Cool!" He held up his camera to get a better view.

Titanfall

"Glory Girl, Captain, BT7274, I'm Legend, the leader of the Protectorate." Armsmaster rolled up on his tinker tech motorcycle and dismounted "And this is Armsmaster. The leader of the Local Protectorate."

"Good morning."

Legend blinked and looked at Armsmaster, 'good morning' had Colin started drinking, what about a Simurgh attack and the sudden emergence of a high rated violent tinker was good? Glory Girl chuckled. "I think they would like to talk to you BT."

"I am currently tracking an S class threat, multiple parahumans, up to and including A class threats, within one hundred and fifty kilometers of my pilot, working on the information network of this world, and over watching my pilots father with a drone, he is approximately five minutes from this location. I have very little resources to spare for idle conversation."

Legend nodded "I understand. Perhaps if you could give us a description of the parahuman's –"

Glory Girl chimed in "We are calling her Operator for now."

"Thank you, Operator's parent we could find him and bring him to see you as well as taking over guarding him. If you can coordinate with Dragon she can perhaps use your resources and keep an eye on the Simurgh, the S class threat you are tracking.

"Then we can move this inside and away from all of these civilians."

"Agreed, how do I contact the parahuman known as Dragon?" BT agreed and enquired.

Legend stepped back as Armsmaster began rattling off frequencies and information about encryption. "Glory Girl, what do you think?"

Glory Girl shrugged "Don't fuck with his pilot and he won't go all killbot?"

Legend nodded "The thinkers say he hasn't killed anyone except possibly Hookwolf. Depending of course on how good Othala's healing is."

Glory girl growled "The Nazi's will be back up tomorrow then, maybe not a hundred percent, Othala grants regeneration. Hookwolf has that ball thing we blasted him into. Give them a week and they will be back in the same shape they started the fight in.

"Wait a minute, Possibly Hookwolf? Either he is dead or he isn't."

Legend nodded "He has that final protective state and regeneration of his own. The thinkers believe he made it into his protective state. Video evidence is inconclusive. Something round and metallic was seen."

Glory Girl frowned and waved her phone "He attacked BT while the sirens were going off!"

Legend nodded grimly "Yes, it appears he violated the truce. We are going to have to do something about him this time." He looked around "Meanwhile this seems to be under control so I need to stand the rest of the Protectorate down, or at least move them to standby, maybe staging in New York and Boston. I need to talk to Miss Costa Brown about standing the PRT down. Though we probably will preposition some heavy hitters who can fly here in Brockton Bay in case the Simurgh does something."

"And maybe to help arrest Hookwolf for a truce violation. Count me in." Glory Girl volunteered. Legend smiled at the girl.

Titanfall

Lisa, Tattletale, rubbed her temples and leaned on Brian, Grue, her teammate, as she scanned the crowd. "Good god, there are nine capes in this crowd. I get nothing off the mecha. It's made of exotic alloys, has some kind of reactor that will run for at least a hundred years as a power source, manufactures its own ammunition at a fairly fast rate. We haven't seen all its capabilities. It was inserted from orbit. It will reduce Brockton Bay to rubble to protect its pilot. The girl it took from Winslow. My head is killing me, let's go."

Brian snorted "That isn't nothing."

Lisa sighed "Nothing my power told me, or rather no information I couldn't have gotten without my power. I can't read the mecha at all, just the people around it."

Brian smirked "Add it likes heavy metal."

Lisa looked at her phone, still playing some metal song about fighting on alone, until the singer collapsed, something, at a low volume, without the battery in it even. "It's a special operations platform, used to being alone on a world and having everything on that world trying to kill it and it's operator. It has lost operators before, it doesn't want to lose another. It will go to any lengths to prevent it."

Brian led her toward the parking lot as he digested that "Why did the PRT foam those students at Winslow?"

Lisa snorted "Shadow Stalker triggered, or conspired to trigger, its pilot which started all of this. They don't know that. They are being paranoid and put her and the students directly exposed in master stranger confinement until they sort it out."

Brian stopped and looked down at the blond he had his arm around "A Ward triggered somebody?"

Lisa grinned "Yep! Might need to wait two to five years to get your revenge. Almost no way they don't find out once Halbeard gets to interrogating her with that lie detector he got working. Plus I guarantee there is video that will come out. PHO isn't the only cape site, some of the others don't have rules, much less moderators."

"Armsmaster has a lie detector?"

"I know right, fucking tinkers. It's in his helmet."

Brian frowned and started walking again "How did she tink up the mecha?"

"Obviously she didn't. She called it. Probably from another earth. She is a master. My power says master yes."

"Oh fuck me. Alec is going to go nuts on PHO."

Lisa held up her phone "To late. He already has, in like six of his accounts. We tell him this and he will keep all of them busy spouting crap for a week, maybe two. He already got Void Cowboy banned, IP banned. It was hilarious. Could be OK, boss might even pay for some directed disinformation."

Brian left her at the passenger side of a Crown Victoria, an ex-cop car, and went around to the driver's door "So the mecha is a projection."

Lisa got in and fastened her seat belt, grunting as she pulled the heavy door closed, "No, yes, maybe, no idea, maybe? I need to see her and her powers in action."

Brian looked at her and laughed "Good luck with that. You saw Legend talking to the killbot right? So talking to its potential shaker twelve, master twelve, tinker maybe, owner, boss, partner, whatever, might be a little hard."


	4. Chapter 4

Titanfall 4

Dragon listened for a moment "The Rooster, Alice in Chains."

Armsmaster nodded "Another that fits your theory."

"Heads up, Mr. Hebert, six o'clock. These are some really nice drones."

Armsmaster turned and watched Legend intercept Operators parent "And you are in the network that fast?"

Dragon chuckled "No, I have access to the raw data from the drones, not the synthesized. I only have that because BT opened a window in the firewalls he is running. I may have to see if I can get him to look at some of my systems."

Armsmaster was distinctly uncomfortable suddenly. Dragon watched the biometric monitors in his suite and would have blushed if she could have, she did smile a little. She heard a chuckle over the shared network "Hush you."

BT laughed now "Talk about complicated relationships with humans!"

Dragon sniffed "Well, you have a female operator now. Let's see how you do."

BT affirmed her data and then prevaricated "My operator is a bit young. However I can see how it would happen. I was very close to Jack and do wish to get back to what I suspect is my own dimension to see how he is doing. However, he was moving up to pilot, and probably has a new Titan by now. The data I saw indicated he was staying with the Marauders."

"Legend seems to be headed inside with Mr. Hebert."

"I'll deploy another drone to cover Mr. Hebert." BT launched a softball sized sphere which moved over to Danny Hebert and took up a position over his left shoulder.

Dragon nodded "Now, while the others review the information you provided, and Mr. Hebert sees to his daughter, how did you get here?"

BT gave the binary equivalent of a shrug "I appeared in a drop configuration. My sensors very briefly registered a carrier, the data indicates it was a Militia ship, or one they had captured. I had just booted and things were moving very rapidly. Not unusual, normally however we boot from standby, a soft boot if you will, not a complete cold start. Data indicates I should have been destroyed in the process as we normally are fully booted and in the information network before we drop. Additionally there was a significant time lag between my last memory and my reboot. At least if the time synch signal from the ship was to be believed."

Dragon queried "How long, exactly?"

"Twenty two thousand years, forty seven days, in the way time is calculated here." Dragon boggled at the data she was being shown. "It is possible it is a FTL anomaly. Time is relative as well. Or, at least our linear perception of time is. FTL travel can have odd effects relatively."

Dragon groaned "Not this old argument. As your civilization has FTL, they have to have some type of compensation for time compression or dilation correct?"

BT replied "This data set has had the correction applied. It is an interesting phenomenon. Perhaps your information network will have some answers once I fully process and synthesize the data."

Titanfall

Danny looked at the girl in the bed "That's Taylor?"

The nurse smiled at him "Well, that's the girl the mecha brought us. She looks a lot different now. Panacea and her mecha had some plans for her."

Danny nodded and walked over to the bed containing Annette's younger, much buffer, sister. "Wow kiddo. It's only been a couple hours. What the hell was in those knock off Cheerio's?"

The neurologist stepped forward "Panacea made some modifications to her brain, we don't think it will change her memories or anything. It did include an interface for her mecha. That's actually down in her abdomen and connected with nerves at the sacral plexus. It is amazing work.

"Meanwhile her mecha has apparently made the connection and is providing her data. At least according to the EEG. Don't worry about those patches of hair, we had to shave them to get good connectivity for the EEG. Panacea went home for a few minutes to do something, she will be back and will fix it once we get a good strip. I wish we had one from before whatever happened to her happened, but we will at least have a baseline now."

Danny nodded "So Taylor is fine?"

The doctor nodded "More than. Panacea enhanced her with the plans the mecha had. She will be faster, stronger, and healthier. Have better visual acuity and coordination. Low to mid ratings in mover, brute and thinker. There was some other stuff too, better metabolism, her ability to process foods and her tolerance of what types, should be better than any humans. Better immune system, resistance to toxins, accelerated healing, rejection of toxins and free radicals, and retarded aging, which are the known effects. Some more suspected affects but we will have to wait and see on those. A lot of the improvements will, well, improve, with time and exercise. She will be the best a human can possibly be. That's aside from her being a parahuman."

The softball sized orb hovering over Taylor, which Danny was watching, spoke "I have an exercise and training program for Operator. Right now she is receiving the education portion of it. She should assimilate that very quickly and then we can work on the physical portion when she wakes up. That will take a few years before she is up to the top levels of what is possible."

Danny blinked "And you are?"

"Ah, your pardon Mr. Hebert, I am BT 7274, the Artificial intelligence linked to your daughter. Call me BT. I am currently occupying a Vanguard, perhaps a Vanguard A3, chassis. This chassis is highly modified, even though it is based on a Vanguard. Its capabilities are very impressive. Much more than the Vanguard I was originally installed in."

Danny nodded "And Taylor made you?"

BT paused and the drone bobbled "Uh no, I, this chassis, was made from parts and plans, apparently, sourced from the Scout Reconnaissance Squadron shops, Vinson Dynamics, and Hammond Robotics. My core was placed into the chassis and the chassis activated four hours and twenty two minutes ago. According to the readouts on the reactor."

"Reactor?"

"Perhaps zero point module is a better term. I am extracting energy from the quantum field." BT wasn't about to tell them that he was being powered by the Ark.

Danny pinched the bridge of his nose. "So my daughter is a parahuman quantum field tinker?"

"No, Operator is not a tinker. At least not as I understand the classification as described on the PRT website. She would be classified as a Master, ranked as a master ten or higher for the ability and hazard level of her minion or projection. Sub ratings, while with her minion, of Mover eight, Brute ten, Blaster ten. Subcategory Thinker, eight while alone and ten when with her minion."

"Minion?" Danny asked.

"Myself, or rather, this chassis and myself. I am not a projection, I cannot be dismissed. I am capable of independent thought and action, I am, however tied to Operator, her goals and objectives are now mine, so minion is the best fit, I think."

"Master ten?" Glory Girl asked as she returned with Panacea. She was smiling and radiating happiness. Panacea was also smiling, albeit slightly drunkenly. Panacea moved to Taylor's bed and laid a hand on her arm which was lying on the sheet.

The orb nodded by rolling up and down in the air "She did summon me, apparently also a SRS carrier, but I have since lost contact with the carrier."

Danny snorted "Nimitz or that new Ford class?"

BT answered "The hundred thousand tons of mass and five thousand crew are similar but they can carry many more titans than your wet navy carriers have aircraft onboard. Though fewer drop ships, so recovery is often slow."

Danny blinked and pinched the bridge of his nose. Panacea sighed "All of it took. I didn't even have to do any adjustment. All the pathogens are gone and her injuries corrected too, as is her vision."

"Not that I'm not grateful, but when will she wake up?" Danny asked.

"She is sleeping, I think a few hours to let her system adjust to the changes. We need to hang a few IV's, protein, calcium, glucose, vitamins and minerals. Then she should wake up. This afternoon, an hour or so after lunch, I think." Panacea was in the chair by the bed. Danny pulled one from the corner to the other side and sat.

Glory Girl sighed as Armsmaster and Legend came in "That should be enough time for everyone to thoroughly freak."

"Oh I think we're there already Glory Girl. Perhaps it's time enough for us to adjust. Hopefully Operator won't wake into a world of drama." Legend smiled.

Glory Girl smirked "And have BT smash up some other gang." Legend sighed.

Danny dropped his hand onto Taylors and got the group focused again "And the Simurgh? I mean the Endbringer sirens were going off a few minutes ago."

"Analysis of existing data suggest I can injure her enough to make her withdraw. Unfortunately that will most likely cause the destruction of Brockton Bay. Operator will have to be either on board my chassis or evacuated.

"Maintaining a geostationary orbit in these latitudes, as the Simurgh currently is, has to be resource intensive. The current situation will not remain static. I have her under observation with three drones and triangulation indicates her position is slowly increasing distance from the planet's surface. I suspect to ease the resource consumption." BT somehow gave the impression he shrugged.

Armsmaster came in following a drone. Dragon spoke from the drone "Concur, thank you for ceding control of this drone to me BT. I will have to get the schematics for these from you."

Legend smiled ruefully as the tinkers moved to the bed and near BT's drone and immediately dived into tinker talk. Amy Dallon joining in piqued Legends curiosity a bit. Danny watched "Are they going to Fugue Taylor?"

Legend looked at the information scrolling across the visor he was wearing "Dragon thinks Operator was already the subject of a tinker fugue, Panacea being the operative tinker but BT feeding her information and ideas. She is classifying BT as a tinker six, with no specialty and Panacea has been reclassified as a Bio Tinker" He winced "Nine tentative, more probably ten."

BT corrected him "Twelve, her ability does not preclude molecular biology."

Danny nodded and shrugged "Well there is Bonesaw, there had to be a hard counter somewhere. Capes seem to work like that, balance each other out."

Legend grinned "Stealing that, that's the way to play it. Of course comparisons will be immediately drawn to Nilbog."

Glory Girl shrugged "His creations aren't human though are they? They aren't animal or vegetable either. Blasto would be the better contrast. Amy is a hero though. Blasto is a villainous rogue."

Legend nodded "I'll have to get Glenn Chambers on this. We are going to need some spin."

Danny nodded "Taylor doesn't have much of a secret identity left."

Glory Girl shook her head "Right now she is just the girl the Mecha carried off." She held up her phone "PHO is having a meltdown but the mods are stomping all over names. She is better off than most public triggers. BT blowing Hookwolf's guts all over downtown, and it all being on film, seem to be drawing attention away from Winslow. Void Cowboy got IP banned and outed himself. Apparently people figured out who he was from where he was standing and what he saw. It's pretty ugly. Hey!

"BT are you FallingIron? How did you get to be a mod?"

Dragons remote jiggled "AI, in the net, see's everything, never sleeps. Why wouldn't they make him a mod."

BT did his rolling nod thing "Truthfully I needed the privileges to control the information about Operator. I conducted a denial of service attack on the other sites and since I have coopted the processor of every connected computer in their idle states. I can stay with what is happening on the network. Security is woefully lacking for an information net this good. Fiber optic is rare on the worlds I have fought on. We were mostly using microwave and tight beam laser. I was able to successfully execute denial of service attacks on the other, uncontrolled sites but needed an outlet to control the flow of information. Information warfare is not new to me."

It was Legends turn to pinch the bridge of his nose. Danny laughed "How about cyber warfare and getting resources away from criminal gangs?"

"In process Mr. Hebert. I have taken the liberty of setting up several accounts for Operator and am forwarding all intelligence pertaining to criminal activity to Dragon."

"Oh my god. We will be sorting this crap out for a thousand years." Legend sighed.

"Criminals have no recourse in the law, I think if they try something more physical I will know. And can protect Operator. The chances of me missing their strike or intention to strike is vanishingly small and reducing by the hour as I infiltrate their networks. This is more in the nature of a retaliatory strike as I have limited my actions to Empire Eighty Eight and the accounts they touched. There will be some explanation required but only when it touches seemingly legitimate business, Medhall as an example. Krupp and Rheinmetal as well as Medhall were connected to Gesellschaft. Dragon has the records. It should be fairly straight forward, though we will probably have to return a portion of the money to the state or states involved. Taxes if nothing else.

"The criminals were good at making money and horrible at investing it. Without disturbing the markets, more than normal intraday fluctuation, I will be able to move their investments, well Operators now, to a much safer, more stable portfolio. In one market cycle I will be able to surrender all the cash involved to the governments as required when they ask for it."

"Medhall was already not going to be a problem, hopefully by the time Operator awakens. The Empire violated the truce. They are going down today. The German PRT equivalent, the Bundesmeisteramt and die Meister are already moving on Gesellschaft and their front companies."

Legend looked at the woman who had just stepped in the room in her grey on black suit with the black cape "Alexandria."

Alexandria nodded "I just spoke to Emily Piggot and reviewed the video. Hookwolf attacked BT 7274 unprovoked, while the sirens were going off. The other capes of the Empire joined in, as did their unpowered. We are taking them. The PRT is going to make an example of them. I brought in my capes and Eidolon is coming in with his. The PRT is moving in strike teams. Chief Director Costa Brown has put Emily Piggot in tactical control."

Danny frowned "Kaiser isn't stupid. He will surrender, and fight you in the courts for twenty years. BT probably hasn't gotten his civilian identities assets. Max Anders isn't poor. Dick Anders built a smuggling operation into one of the largest medical supply and pharmaceutical companies in the US and it is private. It's all Max's."

"A significant portion of the assets are fenced off from the company. How well that fence holds is up to the trusties I believe. However I may still find a way in to everything except the trust." BT informed them.

Legend nodded "It really doesn't matter. The Protectorate and PRT cannot be seen as being soft on truce breakers. Thank whatever deity you didn't harm anyone besides Empire Capes and gang members BT. Otherwise this would be a different conversation."

"The purpose of the Militia is protecting civilians. It's not hard coded, rather built in to memory now. Thankfully I have the sensors and processing power to avoid causing civilian casualties and prevent any in my range in the low hostility environment today. Medium or High intensity combat will not have the same result. Operator will have to learn some things, then we will be better as a team and more capable."

Danny chuckled "I don't think it will be a problem. Taylor isn't slow, or wasn't already. She should have been moved up a year and gone to Arcadia."

Alexandria frowned "Gaining powers changes people. Operator's trigger was bad. Sustained bullying leading to her being locked in her locker with hazardous waste." The others in the room froze. Alexandria nodded "Director Piggot is not happy. As soon as the Simurgh stopped descending she had the PRT at Winslow. All the students and faculty are being questioned. It's fairly grim. Rampant bullying, gang recruiting, drug use."

Glory Girl snorted "Yeah, Winslow has a reputation. So Operator could have been a tinker or a master."

Alexandria looked at the two drones "Or both. We will know more after her power testing."

"If she comes in for testing." Everyone in the room turned and looked at Brandish, Carol Dallon, Glory Girl and Panaceas mother as she walked in with a man in a rumpled suit with a lazy eye.

Danny laughed "Brandish, what the hell were you thinking riding with Frank, he's blind in one eye."

Frank Columbo, he played up the old tv show, and his resemblance to and identical name with the lead character in the series, but was probably the sharpest lawyer in town, looked at Danny "I'm not blind. I'm a thinker and have a wider field of view than you normal humans."

"You got a lazy eye, you were born with it, had it since we were in kindergarten together. You aren't a parahuman. So you think I need a lawyer?"

"Not you Danny, I just walked in our girl's hospital room and found two thirds of the Triumvirate, the other third is hovering around outside glowing at people. Now, what the hell happened, and all you people are on notice, I am Operators attorney of record. I am not afraid of the courts and juries, in fact I love them. I held Operator thirty two minutes after she was born, and as the priest baptized her."

Alexandria sighed "And of course you are the Managing Partner of Dewey, Cheatum and Howe."

Danny laughed "We thought that up in third grade. I still can't believe you got it done Frank."

Frank chuckled "Dewey was an ambulance chaser, he was glad for the business, Cheatum was a hell of a contract attorney and had a sense of humor, Katherine Howe, God rest her soul, was a great trial attorney when women weren't trial attorneys. That bitch Iron Rain deserved to die screaming like she did just for her. Not to mention everyone else she killed."

Dany nodded "Amen. Kaiser should have killed her when they were kids instead of waiting until his dad was on the way out."

Dragons drone spun to Danny "Marquis says he killed Iron Rain."

Danny nodded "He killed a lot of people, but he had a thing about women and children. Killed his own people for it if they killed one, even by accident.

"Kaiser killed Iron Rain for killing his wife in one of her rages. Maybe, probably, to get old Dicks fortune to himself. Knocked her out of the air impaled on a blade. It looked like one of Marquis's bone spikes. Nobody saw it from close up and the spike, or blade, was gone when the cops found the body."

Brandish nodded "Marquis never hurt us, just stopped us until… well, that last time. There were circumstances out of all our control then."

"As fascinating as this is, Legend, we have some people waiting. Dragon, Armsmaster? Brandish if you and New Wave could guard the hospital?" Alexandria asked.

Glory Girl looked after the Hero's as they left. Brandish frowned "You want to go?"

Glory Girl nodded "Probably ought to be an all Protectorate thing though."

Brandish smiled and Frank nodded "Yes, no way there aren't a hundred lawsuits. Speaking of which, you are the minion?"

He was looking at Dragons drone. It lifted slightly and backed up as BT brought his forward. "I am, BT 7274, call me BT." Frank made a more motion with his hand and the whole story poured out of BT, with holographic projections.

Titanfall

Lung sat in his office chair, behind his desk. Some western affectations were OK. Sitting on your legs for hours and writing with paint brushes was fucking torture. "So the Mecha appeared and the Simurgh came to take a look. Hookwolf decided to try the Mecha. An animal response from an animal, not surprising.

"The Mecha is made of tinker alloys and is fast and strong."

Bakuda nodded "Exotic alloys I have never seen or heard of. Some kind of power source too. It has to be a fusion reaction, or maybe zero point module backed up by storage. Capacitors maybe. Force fields. Unlimited power for weapons, and it has a lot of those. Even without the girl it is smart and fast, an AI level program running it on fast processors with a lot of memory. The Empire didn't even scratch its paint. It is obviously tracking the Simurgh, and is not afraid of her."

Lung snorted "It has not fought the Endbringer yet. We will see. Respect the truce." Lung went back to the ledger in front of him. The people in his office filed out. Aside from Oni Lee who took his place in the corner, ever watchful. Lung nodded. Lee was not the man he was, and he was less every day. Nearly a robot like the Mecha now. Maybe the Mecha was even more than him. Bakuda was unsuitable, though this Mecha seemed to give her pause. Kenta Sato sighed as he took off his mask, lay it on the desk facing him and contemplated it. Made for him by Yoshikazu, one of the last great swordsmiths of Japan. It brought him no peace though, only bitter memories.

Titanfall

Coil gave the order and withdrew his mercenaries to final guard positions. He himself was busy fighting off whoever this was trying to pillage his fortune in both timelines. He was not being successful. In the confusion of the Endbringer attack he would have some time for this, before his reserve strike team of the PRT had to respond to the calls already coming in for him and it. Not much time but some


	5. Chapter 5

Titanfall 5

BT provided the location of the Empire's shelter via his drones. He was encouraged by the PRT asking, as Dragon was deep enough in his system to have seen the raw data and she could have figured it out on her own. He hoped it was indicative of the relationship the PRT hoped to establish with Operator and himself.

Of course the shelter was under the Medhall building. A private Endbringer shelter for Medhall and its employees.

Dragon and the Protectorate surrounded the Medhall building along with several other sites. The PRT backed them up while the BBPD cleared the areas of civilians. Eidolon lowered himself down and looked at Legend and Alexandria "So not much of a secret identity left for Kaiser and the Empire 88."

Legend barked a laugh looking around at the hundreds of Capes "I thought we shut off the Endbringer response?"

Rime nodded as she strode up "Everyone knows about Hookwolf and the Empire's truce breaking. The heroes are here to do something about that, the villains are here to watch what happens."

"No pressure then." Alexandria replied "Piggot has half the PRT rounding up Empire normal for truce violations as fast as Dragon and BT identify them from the video, videos, how many people were watching that fight? Anyway she has the normal. Now do we knock this building down or-"

One of BT's drones hovered over to the group "I have the facility to communicate with those inside the shelter."

Armsmaster nodded "Of course, the same way you broadcast the music. Inducing vibrations in surfaces. You can detect and interpret sound the same way."

Alexandria nodded "Not as satisfying."

Legend gave her a long look and turned to the drone "If you could put me in contact with Kaiser?"

Kaiser, sitting in an opulently appointed conference room, started when suddenly every speaker in the room announced "Stand by for Legend." There was a hiss then Legends voice "Kaiser. Members of the Empire 88, you are surrounded. You have five minutes to come out with your hands up and no use of powers. You are under arrest for violation of the Endbringer truce."

Kaiser looked at the screens showing a ring of Heroes surrounding not only this building, but the points where the various tunnels exited to the surface. A ring backed up by PRT troopers, and then BBPD. Rune opened her mouth and then snapped it closed when Victor glared at her. Kaiser opened with "We will surrender Hookwolf, Storm Tiger and Cricket."

"Four minutes thirty seconds. You are the leader of the Empire 88. The other capes in your organization are accomplices or accessories. You are all being charged and will be tried."

Kaiser snorted "The precepts of the Rico act?"

"Four minutes, I am not here to debate the fine points of the law with you Kaiser. If you do not surrender we will dig you out. We won't be responsible for however many of you are killed when we drop the building on you."

Everyone backed away as the speaker on the table was impaled on a steel blade which grew from the layer of steel under the mirror finished lignum vitae surface of the table.

Outside Purity, glowing white, lowered herself down beside Legend "I am not now, nor have I been for the last five months, part of the Empire."

Legend looked at her, not bothered by the bright light she emitted. BT supplied "Six months three days ago a split was reported in the Empire. Mostly as rumor, in local news outlets and law enforcement humint reports. Since that time, Purity has concentrated on unsupported attacks against the ABB. Anecdotal evidence backs up her claim. As do court records."

Legend nodded "So, are you willing to testify against Kaiser?"

Purity shifted "We were married. Our divorce just became final a month ago. I don't know how much I could help."

Alexandria landed solidly beside Legend "You could not be compelled to testify, you could decide to testify."

Legend looked at his fellow Triumvirate member then back at Purity "Consider yourself under arrest and paroled, until we get the whole story from you Purity. If you fail to report when called it will be added to the charges against you. Now if you are not willing to help us here it would be best for you to withdraw, and have your attorney to contact the legal section of the local PRT."

Purity flew off and Legend looked at his HUD "Three minutes Kaiser."

Alexandria snorted "Theatrics. He will come out at the last second. I'll make sure no one gets trigger happy." Legend nodded to her.

"Unfortunate." Legend arched a brow at the drone. "I had a list of music cued up starting with 12 Gauge, Dunkey butt."

Legend laughed. The drone started playing the song, six instrumental bass beats then 'Gimme that dunkey butt and them big ole legs! Ain't no shame in this game! I ain't too proud to beg!' while bopping up and down. Legend laughed.

Titanfall

Glory Girl started when the enormous, girl? Yes girl, came into the room. The spade she leaned against the wall in the corner clinched it "Gully? They brought the wards?"

Gully shrugged "Endbringer attack that changed to something else. I help during those. Usually I prepare the staging areas and medical facilities. After, I help with cleanup. My team is guarding the hospital."

Glory Girl nodded then grinned "Hey, not trying to be rude but I heard you had some problems because of your trigger. Want my sister Panacea to take a look?"

The others in the room went silent and Panacea was out of her chair in a flash "Vicky! Excuse my sister Glory Girl Gully. She is an Alexandria package and invulnerability apparently makes you insensitive!"

Gully laughed at the small girl cowing the larger blond. Then she blinked "Oh, Bio tinker I heard? Nothing wrong with me really. My face, but you know, nothing physical?"

Amy snorted and grabbed her hand "Augment one person and suddenly you are Bonesaw. This is going to be a pain. People's reactions, not pain for you. Oh wow, yeah no kidding nothing wrong, healthy as a horse. Here let me do this, and then fix that. There no more overbite. Genetic though so if you have kids you will have to get an orthodontist or oral surgeon. Although I could, there, adjusted. Like Operator, that should be permanent now, if your kids have over or under bites it's their fathers fault."

Vicky blinked "Ames?"

"If I am going to be outed as a bio-tinker I might as well take advantage right? Maybe if I do good things I can scrape some of the mud off the categorization."

Carol Dallon rolled her eyes "You still need permission young lady! You can't just go around fixing people!"

"So that virus I made to make people allergic to non-pharmaceutical opioids and alcohol was bad then?"

Carol blinked "What?"

Danny chuckled "Well that's the end of the Merchants. Why not pot and designer drugs, meth amphetamine?"

Amy grinned at him "Working on meth. Got to figure out the antidote, amphetamine has some clinical usage. Opioids were actually easy to figure out the antidote to the allergy for. Designer drugs are such a tiny part of the market and usually self-limiting. Alcohol was the big one. As for pot, while it hasn't been proved to have any efficacy clinically, it apparently doesn't hurt, and dopers get some kind of soporific mental effect out of it. It does reduce some symptomology as well. Well the smoke could be harmful, all kinds of combustion by products, if they smoke it rather than ingesting it. Maybe I can make them allergic to the smoke?"

Danny nodded "Pharma will love you if they get to sell THC."

Carol sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Oh my God, the lawsuits!"

Amy shrugged "If they want to kill themselves we can give them the antidote. Maybe have them sign something so the state doesn't have to pay their medical cost."

Frank barked a laugh "Insurance companies won't cover the ones that do. Liberals will hate you, only the poor will be forced to be sober and healthier because the conservatives will never pay for health care for drugs and alcohol, well off the government's dime. This will be decades of fun. History in the making."

Gully looked at Glory Girl "I'll just be over here. In the corner, guarding."

Vicky chuckled "It usually isn't like this. Amy is usually a quiet one, a little sarcastic. She will wind down after a while. Operator and BT got her all fired up." Gully looked over at where Amy was surrounded by Frank and Carol and felt of her now rather attractive, girl next door sort of, face. Vicky grinned and held up a compact mirror.

Titanfall

Emily Piggot watched the siege of the Medhall building while PFC Samuels briefed her, and the rest of the senior staff, on the Titan. After he finished his five slides with five bullet points per slide, Supplemented by some rather good video of the Titan classes he got from the game copy he still had, one of the PowerPoint rangers had obviously coached him, and his cluster of troopers who were hardcore gamers. She asked "So our chances of stopping this thing are nil, not only that, but there is the possibility that Operator could call down up to a hundred and ninety nine more of these Titans, of all different classes."

""Ma'am, realistically, the PRT's chances are very low, the Triumvirate could possibly stop one. Although modified as BT has said he is, there is a non-zero chance they could not. Once Operator is, awake, alert and fully trained?" He paused. "As for how many she could call? What if she can call more carriers? There were six or seven in the game and that was just the Militia. The IMC had more. If she can control all Titans, well-" he did the first PFC like thing of his briefing and shrugged with a wry look on his face.

Emily smiled tightly "Thank you Trooper Samuels. You and your group continue to work on it please.

"OK, let's discuss options for containment of the Empire capes and then we will discuss what we are going to do about Operator and BT 7274."

Titanfall

Lung watched the live feed of the Empire surrendering, bringing five of their members out on stretchers, and grinned viciously. "We cannot violate the truce. Meanwhile we will move to shore up the areas of our territory that border the Empire territory. We will also prepare for an assault on the Merchants. Once we have eliminated them we will turn our attention to the Empire."

Bakuda frowned but nodded "The Merchants will not expect us."

Lung smiled wider and nodded. Oni lee sat silently.

Titanfall

"Fuckshit piss drinkers. Cocksucking crackers got what they deserved, fucked right in the ass, dry. Fucking cumguzzlers." Skidmark, leader of the Archers Bridge Merchants, turned from the TV to his crack pipe. Meth was the only thing working today. The crack and crank had been stepped on to much or something. And it must have been with rat poison. Squealer was still hurling all over the fucking place and useless. At least the fucking sirens had stopped. Woke him up. What the fuck was that about?

Titanfall

Marcia Haze, of Calle, Johnson, and Smith looked at her client "What the hell Kayden? You should have let us talk to them. OK, no sweat, we got this. You might have to join the Protectorate though. Just had a baby, we can blame the hormones, post-partum, or something. Men are idiots, they will buy it. Piggot doesn't have kids so doesn't know, still a harder sell. Hmmm, most parahumans don't have kids, hey this could work for us! Let me call in a associate. She has experience with the military and PRT."

Titanfall

Thomas Calvert, Coil, watched his PRT strike team and nodded. In his other timeline he watched as another attack on the Mecha, Titan, failed. He dropped that timeline and started another where he tried to take over some of the former Empire's territory. That did not go well, but he got a little farther. Obviously leaving the death machine alone and concentrating on the former Empire was the payoff here. Especially if he got the Undersiders working on their normal assets, and his Tattletale working on Kaisers assets. He really needed those assets. He was down to the strictly legitimate assets of his construction concern. Admittedly not broke, but his assets had been halved at least.

Why the Gesellschaft didn't reinforce the Empire was the question.

Titanfall

Taylor opened her eyes to a room with wallpaper and an off-white ceiling, in a hospital bed. She blinked and sighed as her father noticed her open eyes. "Hey Dad."

"Hey Little Owl. Sorry about the generic Cheerios. Who knew they were full of gamma radiation?"

"Dad jokes? Seriously? Hey, wait, I can see without glasses? Wow, ok yeah I read that. Reality is a little different. This will be interesting."

"Laugh or cry Kiddo. So Amy will be here in a minute. Uh Panacea. She is off doing rebuilds on hero's but she stops in every once in a while. I got some guys with her recording and writing up paperwork. Frank got a hold of her. He has her charging the Medicare rates."

"Columbo? The guy with the-" She motioned at her face "My godfather Frank?"

Danny chuckled "Yeah, he heard and came running. He is busy terrorizing the PRT and Protectorate."

"Oh god, he finally got his shot at taking on the man!"

"Yeah, he will love you forever, not that he didn't before. Your godmother is helping him."

Taylor sighed again and closed her eyes "Lacey went right back to being an enforcer for Lustrum didn't she?"

Danny started "Uh well, wait, you knew about that?"

Taylor shot him a look "She and I packed up Mom's stuff. You were out of it. She drank a lot. Things were said."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

Taylor sighed, now he ask about the bullying "Because I am a teenager and your daughter? The genes carried, so just enduring is what we do? Why do you keep working on the ferry? Maybe I wanted to handle my own stuff. Then, well, it was too late."

"Well that's over with. BT went and got your journal. He also provided Frank a bunch of sensor data. He has drones all over the place. Frank is on the warpath. He got Legend and Costa Brown on the warpath too and they are cleaning house."

Taylor sat up and scooted back. Danny put a pillow behind her "I know. Panacea wired me for wireless and he has been feeding me data.

"You are not going to believe how much money he stole from criminals. The government thinks organized crime is a hundred billion dollar business, they are wrong, he has already gotten more than that. Oh wait, he says fruit of the poisonous tree so he is taking everything he finds and the lawyers can argue about it. Jeeze. We are going to have to live in him. The Empire was linked to Gesellschaft who was linked to all kinds of organizations and corporations. So was Medhall. They also had some financial dealings with the Merchants. The only ones with two dimes left to rub together are the ABB. If he, we, work on it a little more we are going to get into that.

"Coil owned, not washed money through, and owned a construction company, a big multinational one. He doesn't know it yet but he doesn't anymore, or wont in a couple of minutes. BT just keeps on finding stuff and stealing it. In the background, he has a bunch of processors set up doing it. I just have to electronically sign stuff which I am apparently doing in the background.

"The reason Mike is in Florida is because Uncle Tony told him to go to Florida. When were you going to tell me we were a mob family?"

Danny laughed "I wasn't. We all have secrets and I never got in that family stuff. That was dad. The Docks were a rough place back in the day."

"Had secrets. BT is a special operations platform. Intelligence, information, cyber, financial, psychological warfare were built into him at the factory. He has learned and refined it all. He is busy using it all. So far against what he calls non state actors." And the bully's families but she didn't see the need to go into that.

Amy trotted in the room and grabbed Taylors hand "Holy crap I do good work!" She looked at Taylor, then looked her up and down "Yes indeed!"

Taylor blinked, looked down at herself and blushed. She was in one of those hospital gowns that suggest modesty rather than reinforcing it. She pulled her neckline out and eeped. Danny had to walk away. Glory Girl looked at him from where she had drifted to halt after following Amy in the room "She isn't normally like this. We are going to have to glue mittens on her."

Gully had eased into the large VIP room Taylor had been transferred to "Not on my account."

"Hey! Not even panties? What the hell?" Danny broke and laughed like a braying donkey as the curtain on the rail was snatched around the bed. "BT! Turn around!" Danny had to sit down.

Titanfall

Alexandria looked up from the parade of people with tablets who came to her and then went away, only to return later, and watched the line of drones carrying a costume or uniform, and gear, streamed by. "Operator is awake."

Legend looked up from the latest tablet he had been handed by his own parade crew "Where are we on the Chief Director getting here?"

Alexandria shrugged "Piggot is still in charge on scene. BT has provided a drone Dragon is using to feed information live to Costa Brown. It is with Piggot. She is on the way here."

Legend blinked at that bit of fiction. If all the Directors got those drones... That would really make Rebecca, Alexandria's, life easier. Meredith, her double's, life as well. Rebecca was probably seeing that feed in her visor at the same time as Meredith saw it. Meredith was a low powered Alexandria package, heavy on the thinker aspect, who had been surgically altered to resemble, hell resemble, be Rebecca's twin. The only way you could tell them apart now was genetics. And the eye. "Well, once more into the breach." Alexandria snorted and strode off to the elevators, her minions following along. Legend headed to the opposite bank of elevators so they could have separate cars and get all their strap hangers in. Or most of them.

Arriving at the floor, the Penthouse VIP section of the hospital, he stepped from the elevator and up to Alexandria who was planted, like the lighthouse on her costume, in the middle of the hall preventing all traffic. He arched a brow, Alexandria nodded "Let's let Operator get dressed." She was shouldered aside by a blond woman, who then went down the wide hall and turned into Operators room. She rolled her eyes at the shriek then the 'Lacey!' that floated out the wide door. "The Godmother, a former Lustrum enforcer." Alexandria informed Legend.

"I read the report. Her father fished her mother out of the mess Lustrum's movement turned into. Lacey Chabet as well. That is in the past, as are his families Mob connections."

"You live in the same dream world Danny Herbert does. That type of past is never as deeply buried as we wish it was. They can reach out and touch people who can make our life interesting."

"More interesting than a 'five ton' twenty odd feet tall nuclear or antimatter powered killing machine run by an unfettered AI, influenced by a girl who can apparently call interstellar warships into existence? I think you need to back up Alexandria, you are missing the forest, seeing these potentially problematic trees."

Alexandria turned to face him "It's not unfettered, it is tied to her. So, what is our strategy here then Legend?"

"Get Operator onside.

"Eidolon is out there waiting for the Simurgh, hoping for a fight. A fight I am tired of, and that cost us too dearly. BT, and apparently Operator, more than we knew, are rampaging through the criminal element. Panacea has possibly eliminated alcoholism, a three hundred billion dollar a year drain on the economy. If she can fix the nicotine and illegal drug problems, she will have saved us another five or six hundred billion dollars a year.

"That's aside from the possibility that Operator and BT could eliminate an Endbringer. You watched the Simurgh stop just like I did. Why would she do that? It wasn't because of us.

"Now she has retreated, all the while watching BT, I have no illusions, yesterday she was busy playing her games. Today she is entirely focused here. Yet she has retreated into one of the higher orbits she has ever been in.

"That being the case I know some targets Operator can be pointed at." He stepped in close and looked around "While we get our shit together and get back on the path of right, before BT catches us with our pants down, and Operator calls down hundreds of his brothers."

"And you don't mean just the housecleaning we are doing at the PRT and Protectorate. You think this is that much of a sea change?"

"I think this is the peak of a wave we have been riding, successfully to now, holding on to the status quo. A wave that is however, close to breaking. And we are on an untested short board. I don't want to be under it when it does break and get drug across the reef. Change can be good, we need to learn to embrace it."

"You sell that to David."

"I plan to sell David something else. He wants opponents, there are hundreds of them all over. With BT and Operator, do we need to keep them around?"

Alexandria nodded "Still early to make that judgement."

"Call me a risk taker." Legend shrugged.

Alexandria narrowed her eyes under her visor "A complete departure from your norm? I think I will wait a while."

The Elevator dinged and Emily Piggot walked out flanked by some very hard looking senior PRT line troops, grizzled veterans even, fully armored and not armed with non-lethal weapons, they carried the fully lethal variety. Behind her, incongruously, came a pair of PRT PFC's, heavily armed as well. The female PFC was carrying a shotgun at port arms. "Legend, Alexandria. Affiliate status for Operator and a request for her to power test."

Legend nodded. Alexandria frowned "Not wards status?"

Emily snorted "Get putting a Master ten, Tinker twelve on a wards team past the other Directors and I will gladly take her. If she wants to go that way."

PFC Samuels grunted "She isn't Heartbreaker. Plus depending on how the advocate, erh Panacea, gifted her she could be a lot of things."

Legend looked at him then at Emily. Emily nodded "Our team on Titans and Operators, PFC Samuels is the leader of the team. The think tanks are backing him and his team up. Really just confirming what he is telling us."

"You continue to amaze me Director Piggot, how did you manage that?"

"Battlefield coincidence. One of those things that happens. He and his buddies were beta testers on a new game somebody ripped off or got a deal on from Aleph. A game called Titanfall interestingly enough. I took advantage."

Titanfall

Taylor, behind the curtain, was providing Danny with some pretty good entertainment, as the discussion of what she wanted to dress in went on, then the clothes and equipment arrived. Danny whole heartedly approved of her dismissal of the thong, armored or not. He liked the granny panty level IV armor option himself. Plates or woven. How BT got a woven material to that level was the question. He wondered if it had a lock. Apparently we were going with high cut bikini panties though. They satisfied all parties involved in the decision. Compromise underwear. Danny snorted.

Glory Girl and Gully had been dragged behind the curtain, and Danny had moved his chair back as far from the curtain as possible. Somethings a dad did not want to know, or rather hear about. One of them being his daughters chances of, never mind, apparently Taylors were pretty high though, which made him proud? Yep, lock option. Where was BT?

Lacey steamed into the door at flank speed, tossed a cheek press his way then disappeared behind the curtain. Danny covered his ears at the shriek. The words per minute picked up to a level he wasn't really going to try to keep up with so he leaned back. Sort of surfing the chatter as married men learn to do.

Frank looked at him "Affiliate status, her being a high rated master will freak them out to much for the Wards. Never mind all the crap BT jammed in her head and that she is probably a Special Warfare tinker slash thinker by now."

Danny sighed "Wards would be safer."

The drone from BT traversed back and forth in the air in front of him. Frank nodded "Have to agree with the tin can. She wouldn't be allowed to use her full capabilities, or his. Some people respond best to being killed. At least from the perspective of society. Less cost, less trouble. Too bad we, as a society, forgot that lesson.

"I'll drill some lessons into the two of them and we will keep the major mayhem to defense of self or others. Affiliate status works best in that case.

"It works for the PRT and Protectorate as well. Merchandizing, well, if what I hear from behind the curtain is true, Taylor has some major merchandising opportunities. We are going to need to maintain control of that." He tapped his glasses "BT got me in the network and is lining up publicist, financial management, and me some help. We will build a firm around her to match the family bank her assets are already going into."

Danny looked at him at the same time a drone appeared with a set of glasses for him. He put them on "A HUD."

BT's drone that was shadowing Danny spoke "Actually a fully functional drone, albeit with limited mobility. It can generate a limited shield though. It will learn your preferences and supply you with whatever information you need. I am working to give the next model autonomous offensive capability."

Danny blinked behind the glasses "Finan- wow it learns fast. Holy Mary Mother of God!"

Frank laughed until he coughed "Now you know why a family bank. Like BT said, even if they make him give up the cash Taylor will be in the top five of the wealthiest people in the world by the time he has to turn it over, and we are going to make a fight of that. Aside from which, under the vigilante act she keeps fifteen percent of the value of the whole seized assets. The illegal stuff counts toward that value and she can't keep that anyway, so say, forty odd percent of that summary on each sheet is hers without a fight.

"Which reminds me, BT we need a forensic accountant, or five hundred. Some retired IRS people too."

BT added, "That is before we manufacture any of the things I have filed for patents on, or sell the patents. The robotics on this world are woefully underdeveloped."

"There are some industrial facilities-. Which you have purchased or put offers on. Hmm how many work-. OK that may get irritating. Hmm we may have to recruit from other locations. I will have to have the foremen make up some test. OK, that is officially irritating, wow test for everything, and guidelines for performance test, is it reading my mind?"

"And it will get better at it. BT says it isn't technically mind reading." Frank grinned. He had already had this experience. Now he kept quiet as his drone glasses fed him information and prepared documents. His apparently had access to every law library in the western hemisphere. He was going to slaughter every other lawyer. At least in negotiations and in the courts.

Behind the curtain Taylor wriggled and trotted in place. Lacey arched a brow. Taylor nodded "Most comfortable armored panties, bra, and cami I have ever worn."

"Something you aren't telling Aunt Lacey Owlet?" She got a poked out tongue while Taylor got into field pants and socks, then boots and a combat shirt. She settled those layers then started accessorizing, with a plate carrier LCE vest and belt, holsters, knives, pistol and finally a helmet with a blue glowing Y in the front of it and her hair flowing out of it in the back.

Gully offered "A braid probably. Hair gets in the way in a fight."

Amy hopped up on the bed and knee walked behind Taylor. She pulled her hair together and started a tight braid. It was a lot of hair and made a thick braid. She had already fixed the shaved spots from the EEG probe cap thing. She made quick work of it and hopped off the bed and joined the others standing in front of Taylor as she did some squats then lifted her legs. She then turned around and made a few adjustments to her new contours up top. Lots of muscle and a very nice set of, well, very nice. Last she put on an odd harness and picked up an assault rifle. "Well, it feels OK. Is there someplace I can try it all out? Especially this jump harness!"

Lacey shook her head "In an hour or so. The Triumvirate and PRT want to talk and are waiting."

"To me?"

Gully laughed "Well they already talked to Amy, so yeah."

Amy nodded "For hours. One little tinker fugue and poof! The balloon goes up."

Danny pulled the curtain back and the ladies looked at the PRT and most of the Triumvirate. Taylor chuckled, the helmet did something to her voice and she sounded older "So, shall we cut to the chase? Director Piggot, Alexandria, Legend, Director Costa Brown."

Emily Piggot nodded "And that is going to get very irritating. Although having a brain ball is addictive." The drone over her left shoulder appeared smug somehow. "We would like to offer you affiliate membership, like New Wave, and request that you come in for power testing."

Taylor nodded "Because you don't know what to do with a teenager and an unfettered AI. A teenager you think is a master, a highly rated one, who might be able to reduce the continent. By orbital bombardment if nothing else."

Several people drew in sharp breaths. Emily nodded, two sets of those sharp breaths had been Alexandria and Legend "Yes, a few of us are concerned. And your AI does apparently have experience in destroying planets. If what our people are telling us is true."

"To be fair he was trying to prevent it. The other people were the ones destroying them. BT has looked at the game and was surprised at how true a rendition it was. Well one, path, of it. It is a game and players do change paths. He thinks it is its own multiverse, or was programmed to be. He lived one reality of it. Infinite number of monkeys sort of a deal. Now we are in uncharted waters." Taylor supplied.

Emily nodded "Several of our thinkers reached that conclusion, but it is not the majority opinion." Emily didn't say, 'which is apparently safety orange, or something'.

"I have a condition."

"Which is?" Emily had nearly blinked, the girl only had one condition?

"I am going to be staying in the Bay, it's my home, and my people are buried here. You are tolerable as the head of the PRT, BT likes you even, he even likes your distrust of parahumans, he shares it, somewhat, and he calls it healthy skepticism. The other potential directors for the ENE do not meet his criteria. You should look at Tagg Chief Director. Something is wrong with him, and he was exposed to the Simurgh. For me to accept affiliate status you are going to have to be healed. Your current medical science is not capable, you can accept healing from BT or Panacea."

"Operator!" Danny barked "You can't make that a condition!"

Taylor shrugged "It's that or Costa Brown moves the headquarters here." She was looking at Alexandria again.

Legend opened his mouth but Alexandria, looking at Operators face plate pointed right at her, put a hand on his arm. Emily chuckled darkly "Fine, Panacea can do it, I think I would prefer that rather than nanobots or whatever you are going to come up with. Then I can get drunk again when you people are at your craziest." The group turned to look at Panacea who was nearly vibrating with anticipation. "Nothing over a three Panacea."

Amy pouted then grinned "Challenge accepted!"

"The crap I do for this outfit. I expect a raise out of this Chief Director." Emily moved to the bed and lay down. Alexandria stepped toward the bed and pulled the curtain between it, the ladies, and the strap hangers. Including Legend, Danny, and Frank.

They heard "Wow, well you will keep your job. You can't trigger. Obvious when you think about it I guess. Ellisburg was a trigger event if there ever was one. Hmm brute three, mover three, no corona so maybe increase the senses for a thinker three. Oh fix up the brain like BT showed me, which will get a thinker three alone. Sort of defragging and cleaning up the hard drive. How do you feel about a thinker six, Brute three, mover three, since I can't do much else?" Amy's voice drifted from behind the curtain.

"Let's do something with the hair too. That cut is a bit dated." Vicky's voice drifted out.

"Hey! I've had the same haircut for fifteen years, it's easy to deal with!"

Legend looked at Danny and Frank. Danny laughed "Well, you get what you wanted." Legend face palmed.


	6. Chapter 6

Titanfall 6

"I am not being wheeled out of here in that chair." The curtain was ripped back and Frank Columbo whistled through his teeth. Emily Piggot, a new, or perhaps the Emily she would have been, if she hadn't been nearly killed in Ellisburg, Emily Piggot. Tall, thickly muscled, and vibrantly healthy. With a sort of windswept blond head of hair to her shoulders was standing, glaring at the offending wheelchair.

Frank Colombo smiled "I'll have to save my pennies. Damn Panacea, nice work."

Emily pulled at the waistband of the skirt she was wearing. She had had to change. Panacea had used up her extra mass fixing her. She had also used about a hundred pounds of pig bones and fifty pounds of other tissues. Emily weighed the same as before, maybe even a little more as muscle is heavier than fat. She eyed Frank "I'm not sure we want you this healthy."

"I'm wounded Director Piggot." Frank grinned, showing he very much was not wounded. "Can't let you get all healthy on me and steal a march though."

Emily arched a brow and held out a hand. Frank handed her a sheaf of legal sized paper "Legend and I have made some changes to the contract. I'm sure you will find it all in order Director."

Emily read through the contract at speed. She had already been a speed reader, now she read nearly as fast as she could turn the pages. "Maintain control of her image and merchandising? Chambers will have a fit."

Rebecca Costa brown spoke in her HUD, the one in the visor Armsmaster had had handed to her after Dragon boosted it there with one of her cargo drones during the hour wait as Panacea worked on Director Piggot, with the speaker built into the leg that clamped to her head apparently. "I will handle Glen Chambers."

"More power to you Chief Director. This is fine from the PRT's point of view." Emily turned toward Taylor "Operator, if you would sign, just here please."

Taylor sighed "First I want to read it. Second," she picked up the affiliate contract and began paging through it even faster than Emily "I want some time before we power test. I wasn't even conscious for my first time in BT."

Emily nodded "I think we can give you a day or two. I have some testing of my own to do to make sure someone didn't get carried away." Panacea looked like butter wouldn't melt in her mouth. Emily narrowed her eyes.

Taylor nodded "Good, I will be getting used to him and then working in the boat Graveyard, as apparently I own it, as well as all the floating ships and wrecks, salvage right to all the others, the docks, most of the warehouses. Filing for patents and permits? Environmental impact studies? BT what the heck have you been doing?"

"Better positioning us in the ongoing economic warfare I am currently waging. It also aligns with your expressed wish of revitalizing the docks. Some of those ships can be saved and improved. There are dry docks at the disused Navy shipyard as well as in the commercial portion of Lordsport. All of it is cheap, mostly just the back taxes, which can be adjusted, as the property assessments are essentially zero. There is no reason they cannot then be used. Leviathan, statistically, seldom attacks shipping, or fishing, vessels. They are predominantly destroyed in the attacks on ports. I am analyzing the attack pattern."

Everyone blinked. Danny snorted "So all that is keeping us from using ocean going shipping is superstition? Fear? What?"

"A combination, I think. Seafarers are notoriously superstitious. Add that to the fact that he, it, has attacked vessels, though a small number on the open ocean, and well, he, that's easier, accomplishes his mission with no real expenditure of resources. That is if his mission was to cause chaos and isolate peoples. It's what I would do."

"Good thing you are on our side then." Emily gave Taylor a look as she sighed, then signed. "Good, now if you don't mind too much, I have to see about the Empire. We were right in the middle of that and dealing with the Simurgh's new favorite spot in orbit being directly over our heads.

"Panacea, remember what we talked about. We can probably sell your virus, as it does save the government, at all levels, money, before you do anything else, we need to know about it. As do your attorneys, and the tinker board."

Amy pouted a bit and then came over and took Taylors hand "Come on. I want to see what happens when we plug you in to BT."

"We have to come up with different words for that." Taylor replied as she was drug away.

"Plug BT into you just seemed gross."

"Oh my god!"

Danny watched Gully following the group and looked at Emily "So my daughter has a watcher?"

Emily nodded "Several. Platoons of them even. You as well, I would hate to catch a tanker bar, sixty inch pry bar in civilian parlance, made of tungsten from low orbit or inside the Kaman line because some idiot decided you were a way to make her do something, and her secret identity is damn near see through. The smarter of the villainous capes will have it figured out in hours, days at the outside."

Titanfall

"Wow! Cold hands! Wait, how did you get your mittens off? And how are your hands cold after being in them?"

Amy, in the jump seat behind Taylor, next to Vicky smirked "I have teeth, and spit. You guys gluing them on wasn't funny. And winter, duh. Still no adjustments needed. I am impressive. Where are we going by the way?"

Taylor and Vicky rolled their eyes as BT replied through his internal speakers with a set of latitude and longitude coordinates and displayed a map "Latitude: 43.0717552 Longitude: -70.7625532. We thought moving here during the hours of darkness would be best. The route we are taking," A route appeared on the map "Is plotted to avoid most people. We are moving in stealth mode and the factory has been abandoned for years."

Amy perked up "Factory? How clean is it?"

"No, no more viruses! You heard mom!" Vicky sat up from finding the mittens on the floor.

"Pffftt, they'll get over it. Even the PRT agreed it is a good thing and you know how they are about stuff that self-replicates. I can make so many that do so much. I need a clean room though, and secure containment. I did agree to that. Plus I made the stuff that temporarily suppresses the allergic reaction and it's so low cost it's nearly free. For me anyway. I can make gallons of it on my allowance, and it only takes five milligrams along with whatever dose they are prescribed. They can even take it in a capsule or tablet. I should probably make a thing that makes it. One that can replicate, for safety!" She got out her cell and started texting.

"What did you do to my shy retiring sister?" Vicky demanded of Taylor.

"Me? It wasn't me, I was unconscious, remember. Besides, all BT did was broaden her perspective a bit. Using my brain to do it as a matter of fact. And if people really want to be idiots and sign the agreement that the government and their insurance doesn't have to pay for them, like Frank said, they can be all the idiots they want, right up until they die. Can't take the freedom of choice from the idiots. 'Murica! What we can do is keep them out of our wallets.

"Now sush, both of you, I am trying to learn to drive here!"

"Cat. Are you angling for a cut."

"What no, jeeze, hush. I almost stomped that cat."

Titanfall

Danny watched the Titan wobble precariously down the street as Frank laughed from the passenger seat. "It's not funny you know."

"It so is. Doctor Curly Hair set lose on the world in a death machine."

"You forgot the fake deep laugh 'Muhahaha.' Both the men looked at each other for a moment then cracked up. Danny nearly had to pull over. He finally wiped his eyes. "I miss those days. Haven't seen Doctor Curly Hair since Annette-"

Frank nodded "Well she appears to be back, and making friends again. Man, Gully can move. Eight feet tall is good for something other than checking door frames for dust I guess. You couldn't really expect anything else. First Annette, then Emma lost her mind. Zoe Barnes was furious. She is going to rough Alan up worse than BT did. He took all his money and assets and put them in her name. Looks like that will stick. Alan is flat broke and going to have to pay for Emma's lawyer, psychiatrist, psychologist, and social worker. He'll be chasing ambulances as well as divorce cases. If he survives the Bar Association sitting on him, and whatever Emily can make stick to him. Poor bastard."

"Yeah well fuck him. I'm not sure about Emma. She was always a little off."

Frank eyed Danny "No transference now. Hell the PRT even sent Annette's flute to the best instrument restorer on the east coast. No telling how much that cost them. They probably could have made an exact copy cheaper. Got a tinker made one even, Dragon is right there.

"Sophia Hess is going to wish she was in juvy by the time Alexandria and Gully are through with her. Moving Gully here to start an East Coast boot camp was the right answer. That girl really took a shine to Operator. Hiring all those Paris Island Marines to run the thing, well, the people attending will wish they hadn't done whatever sent them there, say aye aye!" He chuckled. "Also we wouldn't be seeing this if wasn't for BT putting it on the HUDs he made for us. Got a chaperone right there. AN invisible one."

Danny nodded "And Gully hasn't even met Taylor yet, well a little bit, but only in her mad scientist mode. Although I nearly had to leave for the wardrobe discussions. Armored panties. Who knew that required a fashion consultation? I was dying laughing."

"And that wardrobe covering everything, but her now braided hair, in stuff much better than kevlar didn't hurt your feelings one bit."

"Plus, you can't even tell it's Taylor under there when that voice comes out. Definitely female though, that part is easy to tell, to easy probably." Danny nodded. "They were talking about a wrap for the braid, to protect it. They haven't agreed on a color yet."

Titanfall

"Holy shit! It's a mad scientist dream come true!" Vicky looked out over the factory floor, a floor covered in industrial robots and automated production lines starting from a set of, erh, furnaces? Bit Hammer horror movie set but it was cool.

Danny chuckled "Yeah, a robotics company was trying to take over the world, or the US, after the Japanese got cut off from shipping their robots all over the world. Them and the Swiss, the Simurgh took care of the Swiss.

"Anyway, this place made robots for the East Coast. East of the Mississippi really. With shipping being the major cost in most raw material and Brockton Bay having sea access as well as rail, coal and scrap metal nearby, well it made sense. We had a mill, and a small refinery, they bought it all up and combined it.

"Hell the tank farm is still full of crude. I've been worried about it for years, no one remembers the great molasses flood of 1919, but your great great grandfather was there Taylor. Used to tell stories about it when I was a kid. Molasses and it killed twenty one people, it was like two and a half million gallons. There are twenty tanks of crude in the tank farm, each about half a million gallons. If one goes it will be like dominos and we will have ten million gallons of crude wiping out what is left of Lordsport.

"Anyway, these guys got overextended on credit and a market downturn took them out."

The girls blinked. BT nodded "I bought this, the refinery, the associated tank farm, and all its assets to reprocess the oil in the ship's. Apparently I will need to construct some maintenance titans and automate the facilities."

Frank laughed until Danny had to pound him on the back. He stood up and wiped his eyes "Doctor Curly Hair, the oil tycoon."

"Uncle Frank!" Taylor was properly scandalized.

Amy turned to her and arched a brow "Doctor Curly Hair?" Vicky spluttered. Taylor was never so glad of a helmet in her life. Though she might be melting the inside of it with how hot her face was. Vicky and Amy drug her off exploring. BT walked to the power transformer and plugged himself into it and the cat five lan port near it. An ominous humming filled the building.

Danny sighed "This is a bad idea, and is going to end badly."

Gully snorted, and followed the girls as her team settled into overwatch positions.

Titanfall

Shadow Stalker was frog marched into Director Piggot's office and blinked at Legend and Alexandria sitting at the conference table with her. She was shoved into a seat. Director Piggot wasted no time, she was very busy "So, you will serve whatever term the courts hand down for your charges of bioterrorism and attempted murder at forced labor, in your particular case, you will be confined to the PRT Disciplinary Barracks Brockton Bay, retrained, and then execute patrols and classes until the end of your sentence. Oh, pardon me, due to the nature of your crimes you are being tried as an adult, as are your coconspirators, all of them, you will have your juvenile sentence to serve first."

"What?" Sophia was stunned.

Alexandria snorted "As a parolee you had to comply with the conditions of your parole. You did not. Your parole has been vacated. You are now remanded to the Custody of the PRT as a parahuman prisoner. Welcome to the first day of the rest of your life."

"I want a lawyer."

Legend smiled genially "Of course. One will be provided for you."

"No, I want my lawyer."

Legend's smile dropped "Mr. Barnes is currently charged himself, as is his daughter, Madison Clements, and nine other girls, along with fourteen teachers, three administrators, and several parole officers and PRT caseworkers. The list grows by the hour. Never fear, you will have plenty of company in the disciplinary barracks."

"Why the fuck are you going wide fucking open on me?"

Emily Piggot snarled "Because you triggered an S class master twelve with a tinker sub rating higher than Dragons straight tinker rating in my town, on my watch! One that can make orbital bombardment a reality! What else could you expect me to do? To put it in words you can perhaps understand, I need a prey item to sacrifice to save myself, several even. Beyond all the Empire capes. You volunteered to be one of those prey items by your own actions, you just ran into a much larger, older, meaner, predator with more ability, assets, and bigger weapons. If sacrificing you doesn't save me I am going to have to go after the Merchants, then Lung. You are a nasty microbe in comparison."

Shadow Stalker jerked in her chair. Alexandria chuckled "And Director Piggot isn't the only predator you pissed off. Armsmaster took it personally. As did Dragon. Do not try to use your breaker state and those restraints will stop tasing you out of it."

"I want a change of venue."

"You are, unfortunately for you, already a convict. Your rights under the thirteenth amendment to the US constitution and the US code are severely limited. You could say you don't have any. At least until you have served your sentences. In addition in accordance with the same amendment 'neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.' therefore, while we will continue to bank your pay, and you will be allowed to spend some of it on items allowed in the disciplinary barracks, that is our largess at work, and it will be withdrawn if you do not comply. Your rights, at least some of them, will be restored when your sentence is served, or you are paroled. Meanwhile, your PRT supplied lawyer will do their utmost to get you cleared of all charges, or they may be joining you in the disciplinary barracks. If they can prove you can't get a fair trial here they might get your change of venue. I hear Gitmo is nice this time of year." Legend shrugged eloquently. "We have a problem in the PRT, and Protectorate, it has been brought to our attention. We are correcting the problem, not passing it on to the civilian world." Shadow Stalker blinked stupidly as two PRT troopers came in the room, snatched her out of her seat, by the handy loops on the shoulders of her coveralls that looked like epaulets, and drug her out.

Legend pinched the bridge of his nose "Yamada is going to have to train a thousand counselors. We are going to have to build a prison that isn't the Birdcage."

"As I have said several times. Recently in the case of Paige Macabee." Dragon spoke up over one of the screens in the office.

Alexandria nodded "Meanwhile we have several prosecutors and elected officials to prosecute because of that fiasco, well, finish the investigation on and prosecute. We just managed to get the appeals court to halt the trial."

"The electronic part is done. It is in the hands of the PRT investigators now." Dragon nodded on her screen.

Director Costa Brown appeared on another monitor "An application of 'know them by their works' director Piggot?

"What we, the PRT, is going to need to do is support Gully, and whoever we appoint to run this Disciplinary Barracks on the PRT side as one of Emily's deputies. Fortunately we have the former US Naval prison near Lordsport to use as a facility and some tinkers are on their way to go over it and get it up to scratch to contain Rune, Othala, Fenja, Menja, and Shadow Stalker. Along with the Undersiders, as soon as we can capture them, and any other parahuman criminals we don't get convictions of murder with parahuman abilities against. Those are still going to the Birdcage. The thing has three hundred cells. We can make it work for the East, the Military prison at Ft Riley can be the Disciplinary Barracks for the middle of the country and San Diego has a Navy confine facility that is not being used as it was hit in the base closure list. We can use that in the west. We have already started working on it for a scared straight type of program."

Dragon nodded on her screen "And the S class threats? Glastig Uaine stays in the birdcage of her own volition. Oni Lee is another teleporter that might be impossible to contain. Even if we hood him so he can't see the in processing area. Strider would be a nightmare."

Everyone looked at Legend and he growled "Yes yes, get them onside and keep them there. Or, you know what, Operator can stick a crowbar in them from orbit."

Emily Piggot smiled wolfishly "We will have to study whether that will work against Nilbog."

Dragon spoke up "BT believes, if you can evacuate a big enough area, Operator will be able to cure the problem, with some training."

Emily perked up "Training?"

Dragon replied unsurely, "At White Sands New Mexico?"

Alexandria blanched "The trinity site?"

"No, the still active missile test range. Apparently it is fully instrumented, and can provide him with the real time data to help train her." Dragon seemed to be reading another screen. "First he has to go over the design of the projectile with her. It can apparently be guided, fairly easily." The others frowned thoughtfully.

Alexandria frowned "So he has done this before. How good do we really want her to be?"

Director Costa Brown answered "Enough to hit a fifteen foot tall figure near the surface from orbit."

"The Simurgh just gained another twenty thousand kilometers in orbital altitude." Dragon turned back to the room and found them all looking at each other.

Emily snorted "So much for secure rooms."

Titanfall

Lisa, Tattletale, in full costume, watched the figure free running from the area now known as the boat graveyard toward the part of town known as the Docks. She was making prodigious leaps and running along walls as if they were a flat, horizontal rather than vertical, prepared track with two tiny blue lights at her back. Brian, Grue, whistled through his teeth "Mover three."

Tattletale laughed "Her first time out. What is the max rating a non-flyer who doesn't teleport can get? Five, six? She will be that by tomorrow. Stranger six because of that stealth field. If it wasn't for the dogs' noses we wouldn't have found her or the Mecha. It's better than Squealers." A line of light lanced out and a small ball, five hundred meters from Operator exploded. Glory Girl and Panacea trailing behind Operator, well Glory Girl carrying Panacea piggy back, and Panacea cheered. "Blaster five. At least, that thing was supposed to be indestructible." She pointed to Gully moving along with a hand to her ear. "And she comes with a team."

"Nope, I'm out." Regent, Alec, spoke up. "It's been real." He tried to spur the giant dinosaur dog thing he was mounted on.

Rachel, Bitch, Hellhound to the PRT growled at him. Lisa chuckled "I agree. Stop before she has Angelica eat you. So our boss is Coil. The Mecha is rampaging on him, at least his financial empire. He won't stay out of PRT custody long. Something is happening to him and his power.

"I see two options. We turn ourselves in to the PRT and go to boot camp, Bitch we get you a really good lawyer first, you too Alec. Brian, the lawyer can handle your family stuff too.

"Or we stay out here, try to weather the storm, as the PRT and Protectorate grind Coil to pieces, send the Empire Eighty Eight to the inquisition and go nuclear on Lung, as soon as he makes a move.

"Meanwhile our boss is going to try to spend us to advance his plan, and provide a distraction, probably against Lung. One thing. We have to decide now."

"Christ Lisa. Now? Got a lawyer on hold do you Lisa?" Brian asked.

"Actually I do. One of Quinn Cal's associates. They are working with Purity too. They already have a team together for Brockton Bay issues." Lisa smirked "I am turning myself in no matter what. I'll have to do six months in the boot camp for the robberies, if that, we did hit other villains, then I will be paroled to a team under Gully, probably, working with the others to optimize and synergize their powers. Who knows, it might be fun enough for me to stay on Gully's team. She does support stuff in Endbringer fights. I can deal with that. Coil is going to be busy. BT, the AI, doesn't like him."

Bitch nodded "Tell the lawyer I'm in, if I can keep the dogs."

Lisa smiled "Good. I already got lots of information about you. Six months for you probably too. Then you will be training working dogs for the PRT and Protectorate. Oh, police too!"

"Train the people, dogs know what to do." Bitch shrugged.

Brian looked at his two female teammates "So that's it then."

Tattletale nodded "Yep, I like living. One way or the other, not joining the team most supporting Operator is going to get us killed. Oh Alec, you might have to help pinpoint your dad. And you might have to do a couple years."

"Three hots and a cot, and dear old Dad has to go through the killbot to get to me? OK, will there be a Gamestation?"

Lisa shrugged "Teenagers, so probably? It will be a privilege though."

"Fine, I'll be a good little storm trooper." The three turned to their 'leader'.

"Goddamnit, Lisa I better not regret this."

Lisa shrugged and lifted her phone. The drone watching them nodded to itself.

Titanfall

Uber and Leet watched the light flash in the snitches eye, then the static. "Damnit! Fucking things are expensive!"

Uber sighed "I think she is heading home Bro. We should leave her alone. It's late, especially for school kids." He lifted his head from editing and posted the video. Leet was gone. He got up and followed the noise to his partner's workshop. "Leet?"

"I can do that jump pack. Really the null grav from the snitch boosted a bit, with some directional control. Hey, null grav, I bet that's how they land the Titans. From the marks in the pavement when he was still, forty tons at least, broke a four inch, reinforced, slab. Could be the way the feet are though. Really, less contact patch than a car. That must be some tough gripper material. Anyway, five hundred fifty miles an hour terminal velocity at least. No alloy in this universe is that exotic, not to stand up under landing that much weight. Hell even supporting it, much less running and fighting like a Samurai on crank or PCP, and it would take millions of pounds of thrust to soft land that from orbit. Millions of pounds for hundreds of seconds, tons of fuel and oxidizer. Maybe scram jets with directed thrust." Uber watched a bit helplessly as Leet turned to his bench and started digging through tools and parts. "I'll do a model and we'll do a web show about Titan tech, I can prove it, in scale anyway, where is my freaking calculator, the scientific notation one?"

A flat black softball shaped drone in the ceiling of the building fired off a burst transmission data packet.

Titanfall

Thomas Calvert arrived home. He opened his door and vaporized. At his desk, in his most secret, hardened, base, he jerked as the timeline ended and immediately split the timeline again. The him in the outside world scrambled for his car. The house burning in the background. He chuckled at the debris scattered around. A very creditable attempt at simulating a gas explosion. Except this house didn't have gas service. He opened the man door in the garage and immediately started another new timeline from his secret base. This time he just turned and ran for the woods. Not before he saw the propane bottle in the garage though. He laughed. He didn't even own a gas grill.

A softball sized drone in the back yard pivoted down, looking at the wreckage of the heavily used gas grill. Blown to pieces sitting next to the vent into the crawlspace of the house, still barely visible in the rubble of the blown out back wall. It then trundled off leisurely pursuing the fleeing, scarecrow like, form.

Titanfall

Max Anders glared at his lawyers over the video link. He was in a plastic cell, everything in it was some kind of plastic. The best he could do was iron blades smaller than a scalpel, apparently made from the iron in his blood. The list of charges was comprehensive and went back as far as the statute of limitations allowed. There was no limit on murder or other capital crimes and he was charged with over a hundred directly, and four thousand as a coconspirator. They had charged him with his sister's murder! Sure he had done it, but someone must have talked. He looked at the miserable little blade. It was fuzzy even. What the fuck? His vision closed in as the blade grew then shrank away, absorbed in his skin when he lost consciousness, again, due to hypoxia.

The drone monitoring the PRT cell video feeds saved that clip.

Titanfall

Lung sat behind his desk meditating. It had not been a good day, not bad, not for him, but not good. Operator had been seen out and about, doing feats of skill Ninja would be proud of. And her Mecha had disappeared. Now the accountants were fencing off any money that touched any organization with a white, or a black, in it. Hispanics too. Those organizations were under a sustained economic attack. Life was suddenly very interesting and bore contemplation.

The drone hovering silently just below his office window kept watching, with hundreds of sensors.

Titanfall

Legend looked at Alexandria as they hovered over Brockton Bay "David left."

Alexandria nodded "Its fine, one of us needs to be where we normally are."

"We need to talk to Panacea privately."

Alexandria nodded "I'll see if she can fix my eye and talk to her. Who knows, she might be able to."

"Or make a virus that can see for you." Legend grinned.

Alexandria shuddered and gave him a glare. Then she glared at the ball hovering near them "And you need to do something about the Simurgh listening to us."

BT nodded "I am working on it. Dragon is assisting. Right now I can chaff with powdered hafnium, which should cut off any electronic means. It will be expensive though. We'll see what else might work. Titanium perhaps."


	7. Chapter 7

Titanfall 7

Taylor smiled and waved at Glory Girl and Panacea as the two disappeared into the night. She shut the back door of her house looking outside at BT in his odd squatting 'rest' position and sighed. Danny watched her and chuckled "Long day."

Taylor snorted "Yeah, I guess so. I'm beat. See you in the morning?"

Danny nodded slowly "You sure about going to Arcadia? I mean BT has essentially poured a doctorate level education in what, five, six, scientific disciplines in your head? Bit of a waste of time?"

Taylor grinned "Everything except medicine and maybe literature. Amy is going to be working on medicine with him apparently. Once the two of them figure out how to get the robots to install a neural link in her. Tomorrow, the next day? BT has to make a drone with manipulators that is strong enough to dissect down to the right nerves and can be delicate enough to make the connections. If she doesn't make a virus or bacteria that does it tonight. She is a bit, well, something."

"Ha!" Danny exclaimed, smiling. "Yeah, something you, or rather BT apparently, made, at least according to her adopted mom Carol, Brandish, and her sister Vicky. Until BT used you to be a demonstrator, she was apparently a quiet, shy girl. A bit snarky with her friends and family. You two turned her into a jabberwocky with no filters and very little restraint. They aren't unhappy though, as the first thing she did after you was cure her dad of his clinical depression and use up all the stuff in their fridge jacking him up like she did you. Vicky says they are going to do the rest of New Wave as soon as they buy a few sides of beef.

"My only concern is that tinker stuff needs maintenance, and that has to be done by a tinker. Good thing you and she get along." Danny watched the results of that fairly subtle probe. He smiled a little at Taylor's slight blush. "And how many more patent applications have you signed off on?" Danny asked as they moved to the kitchen and Taylor got a glass of water. After setting her helmet on the table.

"Six different kinds of grenades and all the stuff that spun out of them. Probably a hundred things. Seven different 'tactical mods' he calls them. Another hundred or so. Four assault rifles. You know what, just all the guns. Minus the anti-Titan weapons of course. I didn't tell anyone about the data spike either. All the stuff that came from that, maybe four hundred separate patents. Then BT and his motors and control architecture along with a process to make AI's. That one is going to cause legal wrangling for a few years. Uncle Frank should be happy, and exhausted. Payback for outing Doctor Curly Hair." She blushed. "It should slow down sometime soon as a lot of the actual components are not 'novel or significant changes', minus the new ones we have already filed on, or BT filed on, just the way they are put together. Which is apparently copyright protected? Uncle Frank will have to tell us. BT is busy all the time, with the way I am linked to him it all happens at the speed of thought, which shouldn't be faster than light but may be?"

Danny laughed "Amy thought that Doctor Curly Hair was the cutest thing ever." He watched Taylor closely.

"Jeeze Dad! Embarrassing your daughter time? Yeah, not sure what to do with that. She is pretty much all over me. Somehow I don't mind though?"

Danny smiled "Be yourself, don't do anything you are uncomfortable with. See what develops."

Taylor looked at him "Pretty open minded there Dad."

Danny laughed "Your mother was an enforcer for Lustrum. I have seen gay people before. You go with the one you like Taylor, just be careful about that stuff. You mother wasn't my first girlfriend. A couple of those broke my heart. I remember Janet Casher to this day. I thought the world was ending!"

"You were in sixth grade. Aunt Lacey told me about her." Taylor grinned.

"That woman can't drink at our house anymore. She is supposed to be helping me get ammunition for embarrassing you in front of your significant other. Not embarrassing me when I am not even there." Taylor laughed and pushed off the counter with her hips. "Gully and her team went to the Rig?" Danny asked.

"Yep. BT has close security and he is tied into Dragon, or she is tied into his network, it's a bit strange. He already has the factory making drones. Like he didn't have twenty of the things running around already. Anyway, the PRT and Protectorate are patrolling heavily and taking the opportunity to continue to round up gangbangers, so it should be pretty quiet here. Night Dad." She hugged her father and noticed she was as tall as him.

Upstairs she stripped and laid her costume? Uniform? Whatever, out on the bed before heading to the shower in a robe that now hit her high on her thighs. She groaned "I am going to have to go shopping like Vicky said."

"I have your measurements. There is a catalog of clothing, several, hundreds really, on the network. I can probably even find or make patterns for them and manufacture you clothing for tomorrow. Even a change of undergarments."

Taylor looked down at her body and snorted. "Probably best. I mean I don't know of any store in town that would have clothes for a six foot two heavyweight MMA fighter with a 34 C chest." Taylor turned and looked at her well-muscled rump and back in the mirror, at least as much as she could "Wait a minute, BT did you…are you-"

"Only with sensors Taylor."

"OK, wait, I know how good your sensors are! That's how you see!" She sighed "Nothing I can do about it is it. You have sensors on me all the time don't you? You sort of have to."

"Think of it like having a pet?"

"A twenty-five feet tall, forty-ton dog? How do you weigh forty tons too? Aren't you like hollow, well I mean humans have some space inside. Armor alloys and power generation doesn't take that much does it? So nullgrav I get, but antigrav? We are going to have to go over that again." Taylor sighed and turned the shower on. Nearly immediately she noticed something. "We are going to have to get one of those curved shower rods and new curtains too. My shoulders are too wide for this one. Raise this shower head too. Damnit!"

BT replied chuckling "I will call in some contractors if you want to look at the designs I have laid out and make some selections of colors?"

Taylor wet her hair and was working the shampoo through it "Just give the plans to dad, the guys at the union can do the work and we can trust them. Hey, have a drone look the house over and let's do everything we need to for security, repair, and remodeling at once. Book a hotel room while the remodel is going on, a suite maybe?" She grinned as BT spun for a moment, at least mentally then the plans for a fortress that could survive being blasted into orbit popped into his head, mind? Whatever. "Maybe not quite that secure?" She chuckled as she rinsed and then conditioned her hair before swirling it into a pile on top of her head and starting to work on the amazing body she had with shower jell and a poof. Good thing they had an endless water heating coil. This was going to take a while. Holy crap, boobs were distracting! Plus, in the way of seeing this amazing set of abs. She could feel the eight pack under the sheath of muscle over the top of it. Wait, wasn't it supposed to be just an eight pack? What the hell did Amy do? And now BT was busy and she could keep tossing these outfits at him. The ones that made his processors overheat trying to figure out how to armor them, while keeping up with her tweaks to the house design he was coming up with. Oh, and still ripping off criminals, running his factory, planning for his, or their properties in Lordsport and the Docks, plus now evaluating the local hotels for security, the ones that had suites. And his drones. The new ones coming on line one every thirty minutes or so. She grinned running her hands down her solid belly, amazing how easy he was to distract. Good thing, she didn't need a observer when she was washing that, or that! Yeah, this could work out.

Titanfall

The dispatchers on Brockton Bay's 911 service were wishing whoever this was got distracted. At least they were using email. Every crime in the city was being reported, all the injuries and illnesses too. Broken window policing on steroids was what they had here. It was like the middle of a three-way gang fight and had been for hours now.

The Emergency Manager for Brockton Bay was watching the reports and her people were doing pretty good dispatching units. They were nearly keeping up with the flow now and might be able to release the day shift soon. Four hours before they had to report back in. Oh well, nobody was turning down the overtime, and the calls were slowing down. The swing shift might get six hours off, after that they should be back to normal, ish, maybe. One good thing, no high-speed chases, if a bunch of perps baled each of them was being reported. When they sped off the reports came in turn by turn. Like having twenty invisible helicopters. The cops just had to catch up with them eventually to arrest them. My weren't they stacking up traffic violations and violations of the criminal code running too. Some of these might actually do time. How was this person getting this footage of them? Phht! How were they keeping it all straight? They must have worked in a operations center before. Each case neatly packaged with a written report, video and audio.

The PRT and Protectorate being out in force, more force than she had seen in her five years in this job, was helping too.

Titanfall

Emily Piggot sat in the conference room with the glass wall, elevated one level of and behind the operations room, watching the hive of activity that was the operations cell and Protectorate temporary operations cell being run by Rime. Emily had a monitor in front of her along with a keyboard and mouse as did Legend. "You are still fine Emily?"

She rolled her eyes and pushed the bowl of mac and cheese, well what had been mac and cheese, away "Yes, hungry as a wolf."

Legend nodded "Panacea said that would be the case. Time to pull some units back I think."

Emily nodded "Yes, we are down to the drug addicts and alcoholics in withdrawal and normal crimes now, and the Police are handling it." She started typing on the keyboard "I'll have the operations officer coordinate with the emergency management people for Brockton Bay. "We can get our people out of the maximum effort mode. We will have to surge when Lung does something stupid. Might as well rest them as we can."

Legend nodded "BT is already reporting withdrawal cases in the suburbs and out in the country side. The 911 center has brought in the local law enforcement and ambulance services. Fortunately, that virus also keeps the symptoms to a non-life-threatening level."

Emily smirked "A lot of surprised parents though. I wonder how many will sue?"

Legend snorted "All of them. At least until the first couple of cases get ruled on. We still aren't telling anyone what caused it. We will tell them about the antidote. That can go out in a media release and be credited to Panacea. After that the governments and insurance companies should take care of the issue. I mean we do have universal insurance laws in this country and the states will use any means to get out of paying. If Panacea comes up with her tobacco and designer drug ones we can credit her with the antidote for those too. I wonder if she can make one for overeating. I mean she handled the opioid epidemic, alcohol problem nicotine addiction, or she will handle that one I bet. We pretty much run out of public health crises at that point."

Emily grunted "STDs, killing AIDS off would be a big one, get her a lot of friends. If she cures stupid we will be out of a job though."

"Hahahaha! I wouldn't mind." Legend smiled.

Titanfall

Alexandria sat in the white walled conference room "You can't be serious, you don't care what else happens because you didn't get your fight? Have you lost what little sense you ever had? We have a parahuman with the potential to kill, not only the S class threats, but perhaps the greatest enemy we, the human race, has and you can't be bothered to even help us get her onside."

Eidolon turned his hood her way "Legend seems to be doing fine."

Alexandria drummed her fingers on the table for a moment "And if he wasn't? If Emily Piggot hadn't put together Operators threat potential? Would you have tried to fight her and her AI?"

Number Man snorted "Not for long. He would stick a crowbar in you in seconds. If he didn't blow you away with that laser cannon on his chest or use that GAU eight he carries as a personal weapon. Or the sword, let's not forget that one. The fifteen-foot-long sword with the apparently mono molecular edge. If you gain her and that things attention, they will take care of the problem in seconds. I had to get Contessa to path a way out of him finding out about us through the financial trail. That path is still ongoing. She can't path the AI, she can only path around him. A good thing she has had twenty years of training in figuring out how to do that."

Doctor Mother tried to direct the conversation "Forced recruitment?"

Alexandria snorted "Not possible. BT made the Simurgh retreat before Operator was even awake. He says with her awake his capabilities doubled. Every hour he works with her they get better, faster and she gets stronger. Our idiot ward already beat the respect for authority out of her, or set the conditions where it could be beaten out of her. She was raised by a Lustrum enforcer and a Mob Associate. One push in the wrong direction and we will be dealing with another S class threat."

"So, we are just going to kowtow to some little girl!" Eidolon smashed his fist on the table.

Number Man face palmed. Alexandria, Contessa, Doctor Mother, and the Caretaker looked at Eidolon as one of each of their eyebrows arched.

Alexandria suddenly sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose "Contessa Path to eliminating Saint and the dragon slayers?"

Contessa blanked for a moment, then nodded "Fourteen steps. Dragon is an AI and they have a device that can kill her."

Number Man groaned "It never rains but it pours. We had our suspicions about Dragon though."

Titanfall

Sarah Pelham looked over the gathering of New Wave, her family. Her daughter, Laser Dream, Crystal was in a giggling huddle with Vicky and Amy. Well Crystal and Vicky were giggling. Amy was blushing furiously. She was smiling though. Her son, Eric, Shielder, looked at the girls and shook his head "Wait, so this girl gets triggered and is like all messed up. Her mecha brings her to the hospital and gives you the plans to fix her, not only fix, but augment her, and you just do? To include working on her brain. So, after you build yourself a girlfriend, who I have to see, from you guy's descriptions she has to be a smoking hotty-"

"Hey! I will give you herpes!" Amy barked.

Crystal laughed "Yep true love."

Eric snorted "After you fixed her, you come back here and make Uncle Mark into, well that, using everything organic in you all's fridge and freezer."

Vicky shook her head "Just the fridge and freezer in the kitchen, we didn't need the one in the garage."

Eric blinked "What?"

Sarah, her husband Neil Pelham, Manpower, Mark Dallon, Flashbang, and Carol broke up laughing along with the girls while Eric glared at them all. "Then you make a virus to cure alcoholism and opioid addiction and do a drive by on Gully. Dr Frankenstein much?"

Amy waved him off "I've filed for fourteen patents too. More viruses to fix more stuff. Amazing little monsters viruses. Oh, and Frank got me squared away on charging the Medicare rate. So that's Doctor Moneybags Frankenstein thank you very much.

"Oh and with the hottest potential girlfriend you have ever, or will ever see. Brute, mover, thinker, blaster, shaker, master and maybe tinker, who is already a billionaire, smarter than Einstein, and has a killbot body guard who can probably take out Alexandria and did take out the Empire." She returned the high fives on Vicky and Crystal.

"What the actual fuck?"

"Eric! Language!" Sarah Barked, then all the adults broke up laughing again for a minute.

Carol recovered first and wiped her eyes "Well you are no slouch in the money department both Amy, and a Tinker twelve, S class threat now yourself. At least you won't have to worry about money after I sue the dog crap out of everyone you have ever healed or their insurance companies anyway. Slick Willy was good for something other than being a abusive, philandering, blacker than all the black politicians, pasty, fat, white, piece of shit married to a lesbian with poor hygiene and 'feeling your pain' after all, getting that health care bill requiring insurance past congress. Frank pointed out how to make that work. You are owed millions, perhaps billions, of dollars. Those hospitals too. They have been collecting on the work you do. They better have banked it and hope a judge or jury doesn't award me, you rather, damages."

Sarah leaned forward "Girlfriend or potential girlfriend?"

Amy sighed "I don't know." She slumped "I can't leave her alone and she didn't chase me off?"

Vicky grinned "I don't think Taylor has any idea about that kind of thing. She was getting more comfortable with you though. More than me. Flirty even."

Amy smiled shyly. "As for me making her, really, I just maxed her out, what was possible for her genetically. Well other than armoring her internal organs and bones. Carbon is amazing stuff and can be made to do a lot of things."

Neil blinked and knocked on Marks muscle corded arm with his knuckles "So what, you made Taylor and Marks bones diamond or something?"

Amy grinned "Not yet! They might eventually get there if they live long enough, for now the base reinforcement is in and the body knows how to make more. Taylor's body is already doing it. Yours too Dad. BT has an exercise program for her. Maybe we can ask him about one for you. Or make one of our own."

Mark nodded "So we are going to let my, erh, modifications set a while, and the dust on the rest of this stuff settle, then we can do augmentation for everyone who wants it. Meanwhile, go slow with Taylor girls. I know you are going to run off with them to go meet her in the morning Crystal. Especially you Amy. It's not a race. I know it feels like one at your age, but make sure you and her are going the same direction and want the same things. Try talking."

"Try shutting her and Doctor Curly Hair up. Jeeze now I know how guys feel. Eighteen thousand words a minute." Vicky smiled at Amy who blushed a bit.

Crystal nodded and tossed Amy a bone "No class until ten. Yay!"

Vicky looked at her phone "Yikes. Bed time, especially if we are picking Taylor up at seven." Crystal groaned. The family all chuckled and nodded, the group broke up heading to their own houses.

Titanfall

Taylors eyes snapped open at five a.m. Amazed that she was fully rested. She stretched, smiled, and hopped out of her bed and into the uniform laid out on her desk, including weapons and jump pack. Bouncing downstairs, smile hidden under her helmet and Hair caught up in three scrunchies about eight inches apart in place of braiding She went outside and patted BT, the invisible BT "So in town or we going somewhere?"

"First you need to stretch out."

Danny sat up after Taylor going down the stairs woke him and looked out the window. He frowned and put on his glasses. BT and Taylor appeared. He chuckled and lay back down. Then he laughed. Taylor went down the stairs like she still weighed a hundred pounds. Not double that. BT would have to work on her stealth. Girls weren't quiet at home anyway, at least his wasn't. Annette always rolled her eyes about the 'stomping'. How someone who was that thin could make that much noise was the question.

Hmm, "Better get the stairs looked at." He looked at the clock "A quarter after five? Seriously? What the hell? She only got like four hours of sleep. Doggone Amy. Oh, wait a minute, maybe she can give me a tune up. Talking to yourself Hebert. Nice." He got up and headed to his bathroom, really a three-quarter bath, a sink, toilet and shower. It was however attached to the master bedroom. It did make the fourth bedroom in the house small though. A double bed was all they could fit in it. Not like it got used. Other than as an office for him. Hmmm maybe a murphy bed. Amy would need a room and the one next to Taylor could be for that. Then the bathroom, then that room for whoever else stayed over. It would be nice to have kids around again. Emma hadn't- "Grrr, that little bitch. I am going to punch Alan right in his fucking nose next time I see that bastard."

Danny managed to work himself into a towering mad, then back out of it with a shower, before he shaved thankfully, then managed to dress and get downstairs before either Taylor got back or the sun came up. He was listening to the news and making pancakes while the bacon fried when Taylor breezed through, helmet under one arm, cheeks red and hair plastered to her head. She swung by, stole a piece of bacon, kissed him on the cheek and thundered up the stairs. Danny chuckled "Good session BT?"

"Very. I have hopes she will be at her maximum level of fitness in a month. The advocate Panacea gifted her extensively. I have taken the liberty of ordering groceries. My reading of her during this session indicates her metabolism, while extremely efficient, is also very elevated."

"So, she is going to eat like a teenager?" Danny smiled.

"Probably double the normal consumption of a male the same age." BT supplied.

"Good thing you stole all that money then."

"Appropriated, but yes. Glory Girl, Panacea and a flying cape are approaching the back door."

Danny wiped his hands after eyeing everything to make sure it was OK for a minute and then went to the back door. He opened it as Panacea went to knock "Come on in. BT told me you were here."

Panacea nodded "This is our cousin Crystal Pelham, Laser Dream, Mr. Hebert."

Danny led them back to the kitchen "Danny. Breakfast? Taylor is upstairs, she just got back from her exercise and is raising my gas bill."

Vicky nodded "Yes please. Amy had run off. Crystal looked between Mr. Hebert, Danny, and Vicky. She flinched at the shriek. "Wow you were right. She just can't leave her alone." Danny bent double laughing.

"I should be mad but between her essentially being Taylors doctor, and having already seen Taylor... well it's a bit of a strange situation." Danny pointed at the chairs "Sit. Let me get more plates and flatware."

Vicky nodded then offered "We can help, just point out where." Danny smiled at the girls.

Upstairs Taylor was looking at the hand on her belly and frowning "Amy? What the hell?"

"Checking my work. Which I do very freaking well. Still no adjustments needed. You need to eat more though."

"You realize I already have BT watching everything right. You can probably get real time imagery of me with all kinds of other sensor readings."

"Really. Cool. Hey BT can we make that happen?"

In the shower Taylor face palmed "Uh, hand, I would like to finish up, and can you give me a minute?"

"Huh, oh sure. Wow BT nice. How are you getting this?"

Taylor scowled as the technical discussion wandered out into the hall "Door!"

"Sorry." The door banged closed and then she heard Amy on the stairs.

Amy wandered downstairs still talking to BT and then to the kitchen folding into a seat at the table. The other three looked at her. Vicky shrugged "Well she isn't wet, and the shower is still running. So, she must have been in healer mode."

Crystal nodded "Though she has stopped asking permission, she probably just stuck a hand in and grabbed whatever."

Amy huffed as she settled in a chair. "I put my hand on her abdomen, its fine. And I wasn't healing, just checking, everything was perfect by the way, better than. She does need to eat more; her body fat is nearly zero. Probably five thousand calories a day just to cover the work out. It's pretty intense. I will keep checking her. Maybe another twelve hundred for normal stuff or she will get amenorrhea, maybe lose bone mass. I can fix that but let's not go there."

Crystal looked up from her half piece of bacon and half pancake with a teaspoon of syrup "OK that's it, you are cranking me up too. I want to be able to eat everything I see like Taylor can."

Vicky shrugged "I already do." Crystal narrowed her eyes and stuck her tongue out at her. Danny smiled.

Amy did something to the Oakley's she was now wearing, BT was busy this morning, and a hologram of Taylor free running roofs like Jason Bourne and double jumping or running up every building over two stories tall all over town played in the middle of the table. The others watched fascinated. Danny finally asked "And if she falls?" The image widened to show BT keeping up with her, a step behind her really. Danny nodded "Thanks BT."

Crystal frowned "How is she running up the Medhall building like that?"

"Jet pack." Vicky supplied.

"So, she is a tinker."

BT corrected "Thruster pack, it can't actually fly, at least not with her weight. It was in my pilot supply items." No need to tell them he had replaced all those items, even improved them some overnight. This vectored thrust concept was interesting. Making hydrogen by cracking water was too easy and made the air around Taylor oxygen rich. The heat conversion set up made the electricity nearly free. Never mind the broad array of energy forms its shield could capture and convert to power. A few more tweaks and he might get it to fly.

Taylor walked in "Did you just call me fat BT?"

"No Taylor. We were just discussing you being the opposite really. I have adjusted the training schedule and your diet to prevent amenorrhea."

"Oh my god! Does everybody just sit around talking about my body?"

Danny shook his head "No, it is important though. I remember the female athletes in school fighting the issue. I thought it was low body fat. They worried about losing bone density too. Amy apparently thinks not?"

"Meh, its more about balancing your intake, amount of training, and recovery. Fluid intake as well." Amy shrugged. We won't worry about fat until those are E's" She waved at Taylors chest. "The man was good but not much of a plumber. At least not for females of child bearing age. Hmm males too really. I mean every male will get prostate cancer if they live long enough. Oh, maybe..." She got out her phone and started typing madly.

Danny put a pancake on her plate along with a strip of bacon before putting the platters in front of Taylor. She glared at him, but dug in like a hungry wolf. Crystal and Vicky smiled and got glares as well.

By the time Amy lifted her head again Taylor was finished, had been introduced to Crystal, and they needed to go. Amy frowned at Taylor "You are wearing your operator gear?"

Taylor nodded "At least until we get close to Arcadia. Vicky is flying you, I'm fully capable of keeping up. The PRT pulled some strings and dad signed the papers electronically yesterday. I'll give the helmet, thruster pack, and my harness and plate carrier to BT before we go to the school. You don't like my outfit?"

Amy looked at the tightish pants, which looked like they were leather from the armoring, black, the same material jacket fitted very closely, no question there was a girl in there, gloves and the white tank peeking out under the jacket. Along with the cleavage it was just letting peek out. The pants were fairly tight and the jacket very full. Vicky looked at Amy who was looking Taylor up and down. She grinned. Crystal got in the comment first though "Oh she likes. She might not like anyone else liking though." Taylor and Amy blushed and turned their faces down. Danny face palmed. Vicky and Crystal high fived.

BT spoke up "The PRT has been informed of our route. Gully and her team are resting. They are going to go set up a disciplinary barracks. Or at least start on one today. They are leasing the Naval prison on the disused base I purchased to get the dry docks. Troopers and Protectorate members are patrolling the streets heavily again, as is the police department, a double shift of the police. I am reporting all crimes and violations to the Police and PRT. I have full coverage."

Danny whistled "We will have to go see if they need workers. That base was mothballed in the seventies. Most of it, then it was a BRAC target in the nineties. He watched the girls leave, Taylor putting her helmet on. He saw BT lope off behind them. "You can still hear me?"

BT's voice responded "Of course Danny."

"Take care of her."

"Of course. She is my pilot." BT didn't tell him that taking good care of Taylor meant having two offensive drones near him. One with a particle beam and one the equivalent of a thousand-pound bomb, and a few hundred sensors of course. The particle beam drone was a bit stupid really. The weapon and its fire control took up too much room and power. It could shear through a foot of steal in a couple of seconds though. Which could be handy.

Titanfall

The girls got to school, after stopping in a wooded area of a park adjacent to the school grounds to give BT Taylors equipment, while Crystal said goodbye there with a cheek press. They then walked, well, Taylor and Amy walked while Vicky darted about, to school. Taylor's head was swimming with all the people she was introduced to, not from Amy holding her hand while she was being introduced. Not at all. BT was chuckling in their link.

Taylor made it to the office and was introduced to the vice principle. A few minutes' conversation and Amy volunteered to take Taylor to the room she would be doing placement testing in. Then had to be shooed away by a smiling young female teacher. "So, Panacea then?" Taylor blushed a bit and got a chuckle "Good for her. And you too of course. So, if you will sit down here, the placement test is loaded in this computer. Start when you are ready, you will get a ten-minute break every hour and we will finish up tomorrow if you don't get done today. The tests will cover every subject we teach here."

Taylor blinked "Uh, the only foreign language I have taken is Spanish, in middle school."

"Try them all. You might be surprised. A lot of kids pick up Japanese from those horrible cartoons. Enough to place in level one anyway."

"How does the computer test art?"

"Questions and a drawing program. The shop portions are general shop safety then diagnoses using symptoms and sounds. The wood shop teacher will probably have you do some further work as will the automotive and metal shop teacher if you place into their classes."

Taylor sighed, sat down and logged into the computer. She put on the supplied headphones with the boom mike. It was dreadfully slow. Faster than the relics at Winslow but still it seemed slow to her. Taylor looked up at the noise and saw the teacher talking to a different teacher and got the time signal. She took the headphones off. "Take a break Taylor. Ten minutes."

Taylor nodded and stepped out intending to find a bathroom and found Amy instead, you grabbed her hand and gave her a protein bar then a Snickers while she led her to the bathroom. Taylor hadn't realized she was hungry up until she opened the protein bar. She had finished both by the time they got to the bathroom. She did her thing and Amy handed her a bottle of Gatorade after she washed her hands, a quart bottle "BT sent this stuff." Amy handed her a shoulder bag. It was full of food, snacks, whatever you want to call it.

Taylor blinked "So are you going to be here every break?"

Amy shrugged "As many as I can. I'll come get you for lunch too. The cell signal suppressor doesn't affect BT or his drones apparently."

"The what?"

Amy smiled and swung their hands "The school has a cell phone signal suppressor, it is on during class times, off between classes and at lunch time. That's why they let us carry our phones."

Taylor blinked "Winslow couldn't give a crap. Kids played games on theirs during classes."

Amy nodded "Well that isn't a problem anymore. I heard the city sent in some like enforcers or something, and the cops are chasing down the truants. Of course, somebody said like three hundred kids were out. Then somebody at Winslow noticed its all the druggies. Facebook is on fire about it." Amy grinned impishly waving her phone. Taylor rolled her eyes.

"I better get back in there." Taylor looked at the classroom door. Amy nodded. Taylor hugged her and she turned and walked off, looking back over her shoulder occasionally. Taylor turned and walked in the room. She blinked at the five teachers now gathered around the teacher's desk. The original teacher took her back to her work station and got her started again then went back to the huddle.

As she tested this time BT informed her "I can act as a Cell phone. I am in all of the networks and can transmit and receive on all the frequencies in the bands used for cell phones."

Taylor smirked as her fingers flew over the keyboard just slow enough for it to not register double strikes. "Or in any frequency period, at burst rates that will make the military jealous, to include tight beam laser. Oh, we should patent that. I don't think anyone uses it here. How do I get the Chinese character set on this key board, oh I see, function keys for different characters? Wow this is going to be a workout for the fingers. OK let's get this part done."

At the front of the room an older Chinese gentleman watched the monitor. Finally, he blinked "Well she was slowed to something approaching a professional typist for a moment or two but seems to have hit her stride again."

The physics teacher shook his head watching the screen fill with Chinese characters. "Definitely a parahuman. She seems to start at a level of say, a junior honor student, and then just explode through any section of the test. Well past anything we teach here. She will be doing her socialization here and taking university level courses like those two geniuses."

The calculus instructor nodded "Who are friends of Amy Dallon's as well."

The original young female teacher shook her head "Again with that? Those girls were already geniuses when they got here. They hadn't met Amy until then. Both of them were doing post graduate work. They are the reason we have that program for them to attend classes at a level commensurate with their abilities while not skewing their socialization. Just look what happened to the student at Cornell, or what happened to Cornell when she triggered."

The computer science teacher shrugged "Well this one is post doc in electrical engineering, computer engineering, and computer science. I can barely follow this schematic and these calculations. I am going to have to send it to the University for grading. That computer she is testing on is running at five gigahertz, with four gigs of memory, and a two-terabyte hard drive. It has liquid cooling even, and she is waiting on it. That keyboard is the best money can buy and it was brand new. It will be worn out by lunch."

The test proctor nodded "And she will be through testing by then at the rate she is going."

The Chinese language instructor groaned "We are all going to have to sign more NDA's. She is Operator."

The test proctor blinked "Who?"

He opened his laptop and put it on the desk. He plugged in the lan cable and opened PHO. The others read as he scrolled and hit video links.

When they got to the last page of the thread the proctor of the test laughed out loud ten covered her mouth and looked to make sure they hadn't disturbed Taylor. "Wow that noise canceling in those headphones is great. Those idiots on that forum wouldn't even listen to the women on there. She doesn't have a runner's body, look at those shoulders! And those thighs! That is a swimmer's body. Or a weightlifter. Coach Jorgensen is going to wet herself. And she isn't a H cup, which they wouldn't know if it smothered them. She is a thirty-eight or forty C at most. When she gets older, she might be D. Admittedly those clips were in the dark, and from long distance, but come on. A couple of them were silhouettes against ta lightening sky. That one on top of the Medhall building. That must have been Uber and Leet. Let's check their channel, we have ten minutes before I have to send her on break."

The Chinese instructor surfed to Uber and Leets Utube channel and opened the latest video. "Told you."

They all listened for a minute and the female teachers scowled. The Calculus teacher huffed "Those sexist pigs. They are talking about a sixteen-year-old!"

"Fifteen." The test proctor supplied looking at some paperwork "Her birthday is in June."

The computer science teacher nodded "I am reporting this." He got out his phone and started composing a email.

BT checked one of his drones and smiled, or would have, at the progress Leet was making on his Titan. Taylor needed something easy to practice on in a few days. He scanned the Titan, or a few weeks. This was the best Leet could do? PHO had a much higher opinion of him than this indicated. Of course, they were a bunch of perverts slobbering over his pilot. Hmm he could track some of these down, especially Der Adler and Blackmagic. He ignored the giggling from the area he had Dragon fenced off in. She was busy pissing gasoline all over the thread anyway. GBU 16B ban bombs, permanent and machine identifier banned, and reported to their local law enforcement. Still he could send a drone or two out this afternoon. Akron and Boston. No problem.

The Proctor looked around and tapped her watch at all the teachers then turned off the noise cancelling on the headphones. Taylor looked up and then quickly finished the section she was in.

Titanfall

"Leet, buddy, I'm not sure this is a good idea."

"What? Of course it is. I'm a tinker too. A better one than Miss Amazon H cup. I'll get this programmed with all you know, you can do the sword fighting and I will run the weapons. It will be great! Our greatest show ever! You saw those four million hits the video of her doing parkour got. When we whip her ass we will get a billion hits."

Uber sighed. This was going to be worse than the GTA episode, and they still had to dodge hitmen the hookers hired, and they couldn't hire anymore hookers. Tinder wasn't being real successful either.

Titanfall

Emily looked at the screen displaying Operators page. The red graphics of bans looked like blood flowing over the pages. Falling Iron and Tin Mother seemed to be competing on the number of permanent bans they could issue. The main effort if you will. The other mods seemed to be providing spoiling attacks and supporting fires.

Legend looked at the section of the big screen she was looking at and nodded "Those permanent bans are at the machine identifier level our IT people tell me, not only will they have to create a new ID, they will have to do it on a new computer or phone. Law enforcement is getting some referrals with information packets attached. These people will wish they had kept their electronic dicks in their pants."

Emily barked a laugh "About time somebody imposed some order on the electronic wild wild world. So, the Empire is safely tucked away, although Rune, Othala, Fenja and Menja have really good representation and may get to form a new group under Purity, after some time in the disciplinary barracks. At least our lawyers think that is where this is headed. We have them all secured at the classified location.

"The Undersiders have made contact through their lawyers. They say they have information to trade.

"That's aside from them barely being worth prosecuting, or their case being suspect, or, last but not least in Hijack, now known as Regents, case, crimes done under the influence of a master."

Legend winced "That will be a circus. We will never prove he was not incompetent and just a puppet at the time. And with us jerking the reins and bringing Canary's trial to a halt, well this is going to be bad."

Emily grinned "A thought struck me."

"Oh no."

"Ha! Just wait. Operator is running around with New Wave, we made her an associate, why don't we give her a team."

"Like I said, Oh no. I don't even know where to start. Other than the PRT leadership is going to eat it up. Hmmm let's run them through the disciplinary barracks."

Emily blinked "Shadow Stalker confessed to shooting Grue with an arrow."

Legend smiled "It will be a test for both of them then. No matter what, if she is the honor graduate, even, she isn't going to Operators team. Operator might be OK with it, but BT would kill her dead and make it look like an accident."

Emily nodded "Without a doubt."

Titanfall

"Piss cunts in the docks! That building was going to be our new lab. It has a fucking roof and everything!" Skidmark glared around at the shivering, retching, addicts around him. They had just barely gotten away from the police last night "Gotta get get, some designer shit, something. Get these fuck turds back on their feet."


	8. Chapter 8

Titanfall 8

Taylor sat at the lunch table with Amy, and two friends of hers. Vicky watched them, smiling gently. Dean, the Ward Gallant, looked at her, followed her eyes and then sighed "Interest, a little lust maybe? Definitely not love."

Vicky looked at him "Yet." Dean frowned. Vicky rolled her eyes "For someone who can see emotions you are sure dense. She isn't totally focused on me anymore. I'm not an idiot, and I have this stupid aura, which doesn't do shit to Taylor. And when Amy is around Taylor my aura doesn't do shit to Amy."

Dennis, the Ward Clockblocker frowned "So, she is a Master, not a Tinker. The Master maybe. Supposedly parahuman powers don't work outside of Earth's orbit, space? Some distance from Earth anyway. She yanked a space carrier from another dimension, in space. Master, yes."

Carlos, The leader of the Wards Aegis, hurriedly looked around the other tables then said "Should we really talk about this here? How did Taylor do on the test this morning?"

Vicky smiled like a shark "BT has it." She pointed up. The Wards, somehow, universally suppressed the urge to look up. Not that any of them could have seen through the ceiling and roof to see the softball sized Drone with active camouflage hovering over Taylors position down in the school watching her with sensors, and actively masking anything BT felt might lead to someone discovering her identity by using the Drone pair of glasses she was wearing's stealth capabilities. "All the test you mean."

Chris, the Ward Kid Win, blinked "What?"

Vicky grinned "She finished them all, even the written portions of all the shop classes. Amy said the teachers are stunned. Lucy and Amanda are over there with them. It's like a Tinker Thinker convention." Dennis opened his mouth as his eyes lit up and Vicky's head with its smirk and her ice blue eyes turned to him like a gun turret. He closed his mouth and swallowed. "Exactly Dennis. If you screw up what could be my favorite sister's first romance, since Taylors stuff cancels mine, but doesn't do anything to Amy besides that, you better have practiced freezing your belt, because I am going to take you to fifty thousand feet over the Grand Banks and leave you there."

Dean arched a brow "It doesn't do anything else, influence Amy somehow?"

Vicky nodded "We are an independent team, not a bunch of costumed idiots. We know how to run Master/Stranger protocols. Ours are just more subtle than the PRT's, and they are continuous. Any change in behavior flags them and is referred to independent analyst, all psychologist and thinkers.

"It's probably not something any teenagers' family should be subjected to. You get to see, in writing, other people's opinions of your family every time you do something new three times in a row. Although in our case maybe it's been helpful? We are all powered and everyone knows how much baggage that brings. Not sure how it would have turned out without some of the nudging they do.

"Apparently Amy broke my powers mastery. The look on your face Dean. I should be insulted. Yes we knew. Amy was getting better with it and we aren't actually related. Unfortunately for her I am not interested in that at all. I love my sister, like a sister."

"Wipe that look off your face Dennis or get warmed up for the thousand kilometer medley." Dennis's face went completely expressionless, Vicky was terrifying and he suddenly realized only her face and hands were uncovered, plus she had that invulnerability thing and he had never tried freezing her. Even if he froze her clothes she was an Alexandria package. She might just rip through them. Then Dean would blast him into either happy land or catatonia.

"I can give you the independents contact info Dean. Probably should, though you have done well so far against my power, as far as I can tell.

"Amy may not be gay, Taylor may not be either. That is for them to figure out. Taylor hasn't had a lot of female friends, or friends, for that matter, and the one she did have since grade school was, is, a rabid cunt. How she didn't realize it I don't know. Only child, so maybe that had something to do with it? Anyone who interferes better be well greased because they are going to have a long cold swim.

"We hadn't even started thinking about that stuff when we triggered. Not much anyway. It was middle school for goodness sake. Two thousand Eight was a hell of a year apparently, a group trigger in New York City and five of us triggering here. A extended group trigger maybe? All I know is Amy is curious again. Fearless like she was, a bit too fearless really, that may be something she would have become later, by now, whatever, all on her own. If they work something out fine. If not fine. Hopefully I, or Crystal and I, can keep them friends if it doesn't go that way, or if it does and blows up. Panacea having killbot with global reach protection suits me right down to the ground. If it takes off, and becomes one and done for them, well that's fine too."

Carlos nodded thoughtfully "So that's why we got the briefing to be aware of, and report, possible personality shifts in The Bio Tinker Panacea. And five? Me you, Amy, Dennis. That's four."

"'The' huh, not even a number? Yeah, all that and your boss is a cast iron bitch, who is rightly terrified of Bio Tinkers. So far the human race hasn't had good luck with those type Tinkers. Amy will settle, and as she says 'scrape some of the shit off the categorization of bio tinker'.

"Amy is headed back to the happy, curious person she used to be. She never used to be so quiet, well after she had been with us a while. Then we triggered.

"Yeah, five, our analyst are looking at and studying it, some kind of phenomenon they say. Grue triggered at about the same time they think."

Dennis finally got a word in "Yeah, well, Piggot was at Ellisburg. Even I can't blame her. And yes 'The', Amy made Piggot hot, 'The' is what comes after twelve plus. I feel sorry for Bonesaw. Felt, will feel, whatever. You all know Jack Slash likes going after powerful capes, and well, Operator and Panacea. They will be number one with a bullet on his play date calendar.

"As for our triggering, didn't the Boston games happen the year before? I remember it was kind of a bad time, outside of what triggered me. You and Amy are second generation too. Not to say your triggers weren't bad, but second generations are supposed to be less hard, traumatic maybe? According to the briefing that is a possible trigger year for Operator too, there is some speculation three days ago might have been her second trigger."

Everyone at the table turned to look at him. Chris was looking past him. "What? Dennis looked around at them.

Chris asked "Are we sure she isn't a Tinker, it's just that she just built a robot out of notebook paper, plus a paperclip, maybe two? And it's walking around their table."

Everyone's head snapped that way and Vicky groaned "Goddamnit Taylor, not even a day."

Carlos shrugged "To be fair her identity is paper thin. Plus, killbot, with, unverified but suspected, global reach."

Vicky laughed "Wait until you guys see her practicing this afternoon. She has all the guns. Miss Militia is going to get a girl boner. And speaking of killbots, BT may have this too, he has this stealth thing that is better than Squealers. Lucy and Amanda won't say anything."

Chris snapped his fingers "That will prove it! Militia can't copy tinker tech!"

"What are you, Social Rain Man? Can't do algebra but you come up with that in seconds? Even past the 'girl boner' thing, which, oh by the way, what?" Dennis asked. Then he howled and bent over. After Dean kicked him under the table, right in the shin. Vicky smiled at Dean.

Chris blushed and mumbled "Einstein couldn't do algebra either."

Titanfall

Director Piggot looked at Armsmaster "So she covered it with an erector set motor and pieces she produced from somewhere. Or some things that looked like that. Thin, but it should work. Panacea hanging around her works because of the geniuses group hanging out with her because they all do. Well the females, the males are, who knows what they are, scared of women maybe. A neat little package. I suspect the work of a certain psychological warfare intelligence operative."

"The Wards want her to know their identities, with the exception of Vista who wanted to meet her first. They did meet her in costume this afternoon down in the boat Graveyard, where she was practicing, or exercising." Armsmaster reported while nodding.

"I think Vista may be our smartest Ward and the others are thinking with their stacking swivels. Operator is a good looking woman even in that armor and they see her at school out of it. Too bad about the age thing or we could make Vista the Wards Leader. It might still be worth fighting the youth guard over.

"Or maybe they aren't according to these reports. At least if this thing about Amy is true. I will have to speak to Lady Photon. I didn't know about this Master/Stranger protocol they have adopted. It is talked about, something like it was suggested in the associates guide though. One of the few MIRIS initiatives that has held up, and it got employment for rogue thinkers, who don't tell people colors." Director Piggot said thoughtfully.

Miss Militia, in the meeting as the Protectorate Second in Brockton Bay, nodded. "Clockblocker was at some pains to describe how serious he thought Glory Girl is with her threat. Of course most people want to dunk Clockblocker in ice water soon after meeting him."

Armsmaster nodded "Panacea's behavior is substantially altered. Could this have all been Glory Girls aura? Kid Win did manage to get some film and sensor readings of the exercises Operator did before I arrived. We should be able to firm up some of the numbers on Operator."

Dragon spoke up from a monitor "Glory Girl does have a master sub rating, and they were, and are, pubescent girls. That has to have complicated the issue. We need a professional opinion."

Legend nodded in another monitor "Or five, and some thinkers as well. Even 'purple' might shed some light. I will have to see about getting what we can from New Wave's team. Dr. Yamada will join us by teleconference in a few minutes. Maybe we can link them up, along with our thinkers, and get a better opinion."

Director Piggot snorted "Purple won't help much. The others opinions actually might. Moving on. The Simurgh isn't leaving and has descended to a more normal orbital altitude."

Dragon nodded "And has adopted a position that suggest she is sitting on the edge of her seat. Rather than being folded in her wings as normal."

Legend pinched the bridge of his nose "We are being trolled by an Endbringer."

Armsmaster shrugged "Who still hasn't descended."

The group contemplated that for a moment then Director Piggot turned several of the papers in front of her over. "And this idea of Kid Wins?"

Miss Militia manifested probably the ugliest revolver anyone had ever seen. Unless you subscribed to the function is beauty school of thought. Armsmaster said "The B6 Wingman Elite, a six shot revolver with threaded barrel for a suppressor, and what are remarkably close to Picatinny rails for accessories. Accessories that fit on a Picatinny rail would fit it. Forty five caliber, six inch barrel, six shot cylinder. Rimless cartridge case, very large propellant volume. The cartridge case has the same dimensions as the forty five Winchester magnum, parallel development has been seen before, so these examples of the phenomenon are not surprising, merely interesting. The cartridge case however is of an unknown metal, dissimilar to and incompatible with the metal the weapons are manufactured from, probably to prevent explosive welding of the cartridge case to the cylinder or chamber. The submachine guns and other pistols she has use the same ammunition. The Wingman's are issue side arms for pilots. Unknown metal composition, the propellant is unknown, but the two hundred and thirty grain projectile travels at three thousand feet per second and penetrated an inch of special treatment steel, armor plate and structural steel used until HY eighty became prevalent. STS was available in the Boat Graveyard, the old Navy yard portion. The projectile is of an unknown composition as well, but is as dense as lead and hard as tungsten. Its level of penetration was, surprising."

Miss Militia dismissed it, called another weapon and described it as she displayed it "The Hammond 2120, same ammunition as the revolver, the revolver loads this ammunition using what are colloquially known as half-moon clips on the rimless cartridges. A somewhat clumsy arrangement, but one the US Army used as they transitioned from revolvers to semi-automatic pistols in the nineteen twenties and thirties. A semi auto 2120 holds twelve rounds in the magazine, it also has Picatinny type rails, however without manufacturing another barrel, an extended, threaded barrel, it cannot be suppressed. It is a large pistol as you can see, however Operator, with her size, had no trouble handling it."

Miss Militia dismissed it and called another. A six barreled rotary cannon occupied the table. The whole twelve foot length of it, and the table groaned. Armsmaster smiled at the reactions of those around the table as they moved their legs out from under it. "The aptly named rotary cannon. Up to six thousand rounds a minute, ammunition stored internally in BT 7274, fed through a powered armored chute, power supplied from his reactor in a connection to the ammo chute that carries through to the weapon. Thirty five millimeter, same projectile metal, A discarding saboted projectile however, capable of penetrating three hundred millimeters of STS.

"In addition to the pistols and rotary cannon Operator and BT have, appropriately sized for each of them, sub machine guns, assault, and battle rifles. Operators are thirty and fifty caliber, again with surprising ballistics and penetration capabilities. BT's are the same thirty mm cartridge as the rotary cannon."

"They also have a wide variety of grenades and demolition charges available, and BT demonstrated amazing accuracy and distance in throwing them. Operator is, to her obvious frustration, not at BTs level of accuracy, yet. She will probably never reach his distance."

Miss Militia dismissed the giant cannon that looked like it belonged on a ship and called on her power one last time. A long sword rested on and hung its gently curved blade off the table. "The Katana, same metal, monomolecular edge. At least on the real one. Driven by BT it can slice through at least a five meter thickness of STS for as much length as he decides to pull it through. Operator has various knives available to her, all with the same monomolecular edge."

Director Piggot frowned "Where are they getting the ammunition? It sounded like a small war this afternoon."

"BT has purchased a former industrial robot factory and converted it to his purpose. He tapped the sewer lines and drilled a well, two wells, one to the ocean, or at least salt water and one into the ground under the brownscape of the former industrial area, he is extracting minerals and metals from both of them. At the same time he is cleaning up what is a superfund site. Actually nine of them. The EPA will be interested in his method.

"He then uses those minerals, chemicals, metals, and his facility to manufacture his and Operators ammunition and tools." Dragon supplied.

Director Piggot frowned "And this facility is secure."

Armsmaster spoke up "Very. I am looking at his system and trying to adapt it to the PHQ and PRT building. Dragon is manufacturing some drones that are close to the capabilities of BT's. We may be able to come close to how secure his facility is."

Director Piggot sighed "He has only been around three days."

"He doesn't sleep. Every drone he builds doesn't sleep. Every action he takes is related to making Operator more secure, mentally, physically or financially. So while, so far, the drones we have seen are only capable of the output of a normal human, they don't take breaks and they don't sleep or eat. So they are approximately four times as productive as a normal human and he makes one every fifteen minutes. It is an exponential pattern of growth." Dragon shrugged "Much like my automated facilities if I turned them to producing only what I need, I am already financially secure."

Chief Director Costa Brown's face appeared on a monitor "So the weapons are not tinker tech?"

Miss Militia shrugged and Armsmaster supplied "The weapons have no tinker type mechanisms, theoretically they could be manufactured by say, Colt, or Ruger. General Electric built the M61 Vulcan cannon in nineteen fifty nine, all other powered rotary weapons are essentially repeats of that technology which was a powered, improved, Gatling gun, patented 4 November 1862. However they cannot be manufactured by anything approaching current normal human methods. Not with the same performance anyway. The metals and chemicals used are wholly unknown. Of note, BT reports the weapons span a development period of hundreds of years. They are the 'cherry picked' best of the best for Special Operations, running the gamut from lethal but stealthy, to wanton destruction. And from CQC to ranged combat."

Dragon clarified "The metal they are made of is much stronger per a given weight than any of ours. A higher melting point as well, above ten thousand degrees C. Almost as if it is degenerate matter. The crystal lattice of the metals appears to have been collapsed somehow. The propellants have some very interesting behaviors, both more powerful and better, controlled, gas production than normal propellant."

Alexandria looked out of her small square on the same monitor with the Chief Director "Degenerate matter, as is theorized to exist in neutron stars. Only a solid instead of a gas."

Dragon nodded while Armsmaster scowled and answered "Yes. It can't exist on this planet or in space. Theoretically."

Director Piggot looked at him and chuckled "Welcome to my world Armsmaster. Powers can't exist theoretically either." She nodded firmly "So it is Tinker tech, or Tinker materials in the classic definition of them. Interesting you can call them Miss Militia. Not that Operator being able to call a projection that is intelligent, totally independent, and completely real, isn't just as interesting. This confirms her Tinker rating though, I would say an eight?"

Dragon shrugged "I'm an eight. I can't make that material."

"Nine then. With an annotation that it may be hyper specialized.

"Have we spoken to BT about less than lethal options?"

Dragon nodded "We have and he is investigating them, primarily ammunition for the array of shotguns he has for Operator, and the grenade launcher. Those seem to have the potential to equip her with non-lethal capability quickest. He can simply copy and scale up or down the existing non-lethal rounds. Rubber buckshot, shotgun launched tasers, though he believe he can easily make the XREP both scalable to lethal after launch and able to generate focused plasma for breaching, crowd control gas and the like. I would like to give him the formula for containment foam."

Director Costa Brown frowned "I will have to talk to the other directors and get back to you on that."

"So next on the agenda, Impressions of Operator and adjustments to her ratings?" Emily looked around.

Miss Militia nodded, more comfortable with this "A nice girl, who takes instruction really well. Her progress this afternoon was astounding. She is cooperative with us, and apparently willing to work with us. She answered questions for hours, from both of us and the Wards. While working hard on a physically demanding course of instruction. She allowed us to examine and fire her weapons after BT gave safety instruction and a short briefing on the theory of operation of each type. We were able to do so.

"Expect Vista to request a Wingman, I think she is in love. The weapon uses firing gasses to attenuate recoil and muzzle climb. She is a very good shot, she and Operated bonded over a bit of a competition and watching Clockblocker not be able to hit the bay. I would advise against him getting a weapon. I would advise that serious consideration be given to arming vista, with something not quite as lethal as a Wingman.

"Perhaps a large bore revolver capable of handling less than lethal ammunition. There are some fifty caliber pistols. That caliber would give enough space to load a sufficient amount of rubber shot or an adequate beanbag round. Five hundred Smith and Wesson Magnum is a powerful popular cartridge and the Smith and Wesson five hundred comes in various barrel lengths. Dragon and Armsmaster could work up some ammunition.

"Operator is independent but heroically inclined. Mover six, with her jump pack. Mover seven if BT gets one to fly as he intends to. Operator is assisting with that. She has apparently been reading some more. Physics and aerodynamics this time. They have some ideas about vectored thrust."

Armsmaster continued nearly seamlessly "Her brute rating is rising as Panacea predicted. BT has developed a physical fitness and training program that should have her near what he considers normal pilot levels in months rather than years. He then plans to exceed those levels to the limit of her capability, which appears to be substantial and growing. Panacea is impressed her work took so well.

"Apparently she has the theoretical and practical mental knowledge from what she refers to as 'the massive download' from BT. His physical program is designed to work her through the physical actions. One movement at a time, building toward expert level. This work makes it what we would call muscle memory rapidly. Some work to get to the correct movements then approximately ten correct repetitions at full speed and she has it. BT says this will be permanent. If true it could invalidate Gladwell's ten thousand hour theory completely. I am designing some programs using BT's concepts. I will have to seek volunteers to test them."

"I'm not, impressed with Panacea that is. She said three's with a five in Thinker. I tested at fours in brute and mover and a Thinker six! That is an order of magnitude overshoot." Emily groused.

The Chief Director smiled "Finally, a viable replacement."

"Oh hell no. I would shoot half of the Senate, and most of the Congress, right in the ass." Emily immediately replied. Everyone chuckled, well Armsmaster smiled, which was good for him. Dragon was proud of him.

He continued "Blaster nine from the weapons demonstrated affects. Her close combat skills would equate to striker four. I haven't really finished her shaker classification. All of her classifications however are related to her abilities in combat. Thinker abilities have been displayed, eight at least, she is also preternaturally aware of her environment and situation." Everyone looked over the slides appearing on the main screen. Armsmaster waited for questions.

Emily continued "Artifacts of her triggering?"

Miss Militia sighed "Buried in that download BT did to her, and her being nearly overwhelmed by suddenly not being bullied? BT did study human psychology as it exist on Earth Bet, and is an expert in psychological warfare. He is essentially in her head as well. It is entirely possible he has helped her over it. Her father certainly seems to think she is doing well. He and Mr. Columbo are convinced she has adjusted. At least socially. Apparently she has always been very intelligent. Her grades from Winslow are reflective of the bullying, and intellectual sabotage that was a part of that.

"I don't think we will get her to take a psychological profile. From her father and Mr. Columbo she has also always been a bit of a loner with few friends. Not awkward, but very intelligent, and the level of her play was always a bit above her physical age, isolating her from her age group. With the exception of Emma Barnes." The people in the room winced. "Who appeared to spend most of her time lost, or trying to modify Operators behavior down to her level? She tolerated Operator tolerating her, is how I would characterize it. Not the healthiest of relationships.

Dragon spoke up "You are correct that BT has studied the relevant fields and is an expert in psychological warfare. He has actually profiled Operator and is satisfied with her mental condition, which he believes will further improve. He is concerned about the relationship between Operator and Panacea and that if it goes the way of most first relationships it will be a setback. However that is also normal, at least as far as I know."

The person in the last monitor, now on as Emily had looked at her watched and pushed a button, Dr. Jessica Yamada spoke up then "BT has actually forwarded me the results of the five different profiles he has done. Some of them with Operators active participation. They are the same profiles I would normally use. His grasp of the techniques is remarkable. He also has proposed some methodologies and modalities that, well frankly, are terrifying. The potential for harm should they fail is enormous. I can see the application in warfare but wouldn't use them otherwise. As you are all no doubt aware, psychological operations require the direct approval of the President in this country. There are reasons for that. He has not used any of them and, under the seal of Doctor patient confidentiality, turned over conversation logs and his working notes. He could command very high rates and much respect in the field of psychology, from looking at what is essentially his work product.

"As for Operator. She is remarkably well adjusted and in a remarkable place mentally considering what she has gone through since 2008. Frankly I have difficulty believing she isn't in the sanitarium. We have parahumans who have endured less as residents. I do not believe we have anything to worry about, she does have her own very competent mental health professional, as Miss Militia pointed out, on call twenty four hours a day. If she forms a romantic relationship with Panacea and it does in fact fail, as most romantic relationships do, it will be the normal setback. It could be damaging to both Panacea and Operator. As both are being observed by and working with competent mental health professionals already, if to different degrees, I would expect them to recover.

"Having spoken too, emailed, and observed BT, I can tell you he is also in remarkable mental health for what he went through. I would caution you however, in both Operator and BT's case, they will act against threats to what they consider theirs with extreme violence. Not necessarily unwarranted levels of violence, but it will be nearly instantaneous and include up to lethal levels. BT may not act as a restraint in that case, if you are looking for that. The so called 'nanny state' did not exist where BT came from and what there actually is of it failed Operator at every turn. Intentionally or not, we trained her not to depend on us. It will take some time to retrain her, if it is even possible.

"They will neither wait on nor turn to the 'authorities' for relief or rescue.

"Operator's thought process is very rapid. As evidenced by the testing she underwent at Arcadia. Even for a parahuman thinker.

"I do have some concerns about the level of, let's call it symbiosis, between BT and Operator, I will continue to monitor that.

"Emma Barnes is another case altogether. I believe she needs inpatient care. Shadow Stalker needs to be closely observed. If she was the one that influenced the Barnes girl to her current behaviors she will need extensive evaluation and treatment before she can function with less than complete and total twenty four hour a day supervision. I have discussed it with Gully and the senior staff at the Disciplinary Barracks. I was surprised to learn that Gully is going to be running what is essentially a second Protectorate team."

"A team with members who will hopefully graduate to become useful members of other Protectorate teams. The Commandant will be doing the same with the PRT personnel. As ENE covers all the way up to Canada, from Maine all the way across New York State with the New York City PRT and Protectorate being consumed in the Metro area, including all of New Jersey. Understandable as the populations of the areas are about the same. The same goes for the Boston PRT and Protectorate, fortunately they keep us from having to cover Boston or Massachusetts. However in our case it means we have a lot of moving pieces, we have the territory to keep them busy. We could keep more than the projected population busy. What we may not have enough of is VTOL lift.

"So, Operator, more restraint than most parahumans, less than the Dali Lama. Close to normal? And if something happens to one of them the other is going to become an issue?" Emily asked.

Dr. Yamada nodded "For a teenager, yes, close to normal, they both, together and separately, have the physical capability and mental capacity, to back up a teenagers bluster however. Parahumans are known to have a bias toward conflict. Operator and BT both separately and together do not show the level of bias that would be considered normal for a parahuman. What is driving them, well, I think that remains to be seen. As to your last point, very perceptive Director, also correct. Something happening to one of them is going to provoke a response from the other."

"Most parahumans have the capabilities to back up their bluster too though. Thank you Doctor. I know you are a busy woman. And that we, as normal, asked you to make a judgement on short notice."

"One thing" Dr. Yamada added "I am worried about Panacea a bit. Her family is not concerned and say she has reverted to her pre-trigger personality. Three, nearly four year old memories, and wishful thinking, do not make for an objective evaluation. Also up until very recently that has not been the best environment, with her adoptive fathers clinical depression, her adoptive mothers A type personality, and focus on her adoptive sister. I would like to do a real evaluation on her.

"With what is already going on, she is going to be under enormous stress. With Operator perhaps coming to consider her, well, hers, things could turn rapidly."

Emily nodded "A good idea, I will speak to Lady Photon."

Dr. Yamada nodded and smiled a little "I will continue to observe and speak with BT." Her monitor winked out as Emily pushed the same button again.

Dragon cleared her throat "BT has designed, and begun construction on, a surgical drone with the goal of equipping Panacea with the same type interface Operator has. He asked me for some designs of mine for it. The manipulators."

Legend nodded "That will help Panacea and Operators relationship. What's the old saying? It's impossible to maintain a relationship with someone you are a hundred points smarter than?"

Dragon nodded "Additionally it will give her control of a fleet of drones he is making."

Emily groaned "Those drones will no doubt diagnose and then deliver custom made viruses under Panaceas control to do her work. Damn."

Alexandria nodded "Dangerous, not necessarily a bad thing however. As we are seeing with her foray into social engineering, which while keeping people from abusing alcohol and opioids does not prevent their use. The Medical community, law enforcement, emergency medical responders, and most of all the insurance companies, are all jumping on her bandwagon. The government because though they collect about ten billion in excise tax on alcohol, or ethanol containing liquor, wine and beer, the total cost to the economy and government is about three hundred billion a year. Bringing lawyers and politicians with them. BT's 911 drones have prevented any deaths by getting first responders and law enforcement to the people that need them or crimes in progress. That has substantially reduced the backlash from anyone not an alcoholic or uneducated fanatic. Some idiot tried to sue because the hospitals wouldn't be able to use alcohol to treat wounds or sterilize anything. It's like they don't know the difference between ethanol, isopropyl alcohol and methanol. Education in this country needs to be reviewed. No wonder people still go blind and die from drinking poisons.

"We have the potential to save three hundred billion dollars a year, which will ease the budget fights. She needs to work on nicotine next, that could save us another three hundred billion and the press and media have already prepped the ground with their hate campaigns against smokers.

"Those drones under her direction could also prove immensely helpful at Endbringer events. Other mass casualty events as well. Dragon, do you have enough access to do something if Panacea goes off the reservation?"

Dragon shook her head then nodded it. "Up close and personal? Not if BT doesn't want me too, plus that is more a public health and epidemiology issue, but I can work on some plans. For right now? Yes."

Emily nodded "She could make her little monsters right now and we would never know. Let's keep working on her submitting her ideas to the Tinker board."

Legend nodded "Brandish will be happy, that will keep it down to these lawsuits over the virus she already made. And the one she already released. Which is being moved to the federal courts and the individual cases combined. Not that it will help the people who are panicking over not being able to be functional alcoholics. The insurance companies are already doing animal testing. Successful animal testing. They see it as a boon. They will be doing human testing in a week. The government, at all levels, are supporting it to. The CDC jumped on the bandwagon first. They have all kinds of data and studies about the effects of alcohol abuse from what it does to the abuser, to its contribution to sexual and physical abuse, to the amount of injuries and deaths on the roads attributed to it. The government see it as a cost saving measure. The CDC, well, alcohol abuse is a problem that has been untouchable since prohibition failed which is odd considering how horrifying the data they have is. We mandated seat belts for less. Not to mention airbags and now they are talking about requiring backup cameras by twenty fifteen. Christ we put fluoride in the water to prevent cavities! Then we let people drink and smoke all they want. We could easily determine a dose rate and put disulfiram in the water as well." Armsmaster scribbled down a note. "All because of the lobbyist from the brewers, distillers, and tobacco companies have deep pockets, the boys club likes to get drunk, smoke cigars, and molest people, and the idiot beer is food mentality, it isn't five thousand years ago, this isn't the Egypt of the pyramid builders time where we have no way to store excess grain, and lifespan is more than twenty eight years! Thank God, or science.

"Tobacco has no other use than to deliver the addictive chemical alkaloid insecticide. The World Health organization declared it the single greatest cause of preventable deaths! The same thing will be attractive to the government as well, the cost to the economy and government is the same but the excise tax is only about fifteen percent so the same three hundred billion in cost and about fifteen billion in taxes collected. Some of the states collect separate taxes, but they don't begin to recover the cost. " Legend took a deep breath. "Sorry, a couple of sore points of mine. In addition, a connection like Operator has would give BT the same kind of access to Panacea, our, hidden, psychologist."

Armsmaster shrugged "Modeling indicates only the people abusing alcohol and opioids will be affected. Mammals normally generate, and their systems process, small amounts of alcohol as part of the digestive process. The virus does not affect that. She called it an allergy, but apparently it is really using the levels of ethanol and opioid metabolites to trigger nausea and vomiting.

"If having BT working with Operator is a good thing it will probably help Panacea as well. I would like to have a baseline on her for Master Stranger screening before the connection is made."

Emily smiled at him "Nice, and those baselines are essentially psychological profiles. We can have Dr. Yamada sit in, or conduct it. Very good Armsmaster." Armsmaster simply nodded. "BT may not be so much our ace in the hole as Operators. I have trouble believing she called a projection capable of the things he is capable of and made it real. We may need to consider a new classification, a combination of Thinker, Tinker, and Master. I also don't discount the possibility that, as has been suggested, this is her second trigger and we somehow missed her first trigger in two thousand eight. Whichever the case, I don't want us becoming reliant on him.

"One last thing. One of the legal division may have made a mistake. They were talking with the lawyers the Undersiders are using. They mentioned knowing Frank Columbo was working with a parahuman. While this isn't a tiny hamlet somewhere, the community of lawyers isn't that big. The Undersiders lawyers could make contact Frank Columbo which would put them in touch with Operator. We will have to wait and see what happens. The thinkers can't agree, as usual."

Armsmaster looked at Legend "Before we are done for today, how long are we going to keep what are essentially extraordinary conditions set here?"

Legend nodded to Alexandria and Rebecca Costa Browns images "Since you brought it up, Miss Militia, Dragon, if you would excuse us?"

Miss Militia nodded and rose. Dragons monitor blanked.

Titanfall

Taylor looked out the glass of her back door and chuckled. Dad had gotten the test results, they actually called him at his work while she was over tearing up some boats with BT, and he left work early, went and got steaks and all the trimmings and was now in the back yard grilling those steaks. Kurt, Lacey's husband was helping along with Uncle Frank. Amy smiled "He is so proud he could burst." Taylor giggled and nodded. "So it really is Doctor Curly Hair now."

Lacey who had walked up behind the pair spoiled the moment by laughing. Vicky groaned "Lacey! Damn!"

"Oh hush, they have years. No rush. Pretty good line there though Amy."

Amy smiled "Not a line though. They are trying to figure out how many doctorates she actually gets. Along with masters degrees. Of course she hasn't matriculated anywhere so it will be from public schools. You got to pay to play in private education. Still a sheepskin from the University of Brockton Bay is still a sheepskin." She turned to Taylor "How did you write that much in four hours?"

Taylor shrugged "Their standards must be low. I could have done more but that damn computer was so slow. I could type faster than the keys could respond once I got warmed up. If I could have plugged my drone in I really could have wowed em. Why that clunky computer had a USB three jack is beyond me, but I could have gotten to maybe three gigs a second of data. Didn't have a USB three cord. Got one now."

Amy grinned "Taylor, that computer is the fastest one in the school and they only use it for placement testing people they think are going in the genius track like you, Lucy and Amanda. That senior Jack Lee too. He is the reason they custom built it. He complained he could have done better on a faster machine. Oh and Singh of course."

Vicky shook her head "And you Amy."

Taylor blinked "Really? BT and I will have to build them a real fast machine."

Lacey waved at her "Don't waste your time. The data network in this town can't beat USB three speeds. At best you are limited by the upload speed which will hardly ever be above ten or so megabits per second. The school might have better speed, but then it hits the connections between the school and wherever it is going on the web. So yeah, most people aren't going to overrun say, a good cable connection."

Taylor grabbed her head "BT! OK fine, we can still do it. Microwave from the school to a signal tower? Oh, still slows down at the data pipes into the servers. Wow that's way more than ten megabits per second. Oh yeah I see. It has to handle all the traffic from all the people hitting it."

Vicky shook her head "That's so weird. Now I see why we bother mom so much when we are on the phone." Amy looked at her blankly, then grinned and folded her ear forward a bit so Vicky could see the curved, flesh tone, device resting there. "Taylor! When do I get a drone?"

Taylor stuck a finger in her ear wincing "Wow, inside voice Vicky! BT is making you one that won't get broken. As soon as it is ready he will have it delivered and calibrate it to you. He has enough data on you to make it now."

Lacey looked at the girls and shook her head "Come on, help with the tables. Everyone is supposed to be showing up soon." Everyone was all of New Wave, and several of the dock workers and their families. The keg of beer and bottles of wine proving too much for most to resist. Mainly as free drinks were free drinks. Even if you did have to go easy now. Plus steak and potatoes. Even salad for the wife! Oh and Taylor was a good kid who had had tough luck with her mom getting killed. She and Danny deserved a party. They had had barbeques every weekend in the past, since Annette, well.

Danny had brought tables and folding chairs from the union hall along with a pickup truckload of food to celebrate his girl getting her degree, degrees. He really didn't care which kind or how many.

Titanfall

"We have got to stop meeting like this." Taylor grinned at her dad over the rim of her glass of water late that night in the kitchen.

Danny snorted "You are better then."

Taylor shrugged "BT has been talking with me. He nearly has me convinced Emma was always a user piece of shit. He can actually see my memories. Something about my trigger."

Danny laughed "I like him more and more. Clear eyed friend you got there. And the twenty five foot tall, forty ton, dog thing?"

"It actually helps that he is twenty odd thousand years old." Taylor grinned "Well don't keep saying you are then."

One of the softball drones zipped into the kitchen "As far as I can tell it's true. Even if not, I am more your fathers age than yours."

"Which just makes it creepy."

"What?" The single optical sensor on the drone actually blinked. Danny had to sit down he was laughing so hard. Taylor took her victory to bed.

Danny recovered in a few moments and found dishes moving toward the sink and leftovers being put in the fridge, the few that the women had left out. "All powerful AI with thousands of idle processor cycles at his beck and call."

BT rolled up and down "All undone by a teenager."

Danny chuckled "It's like that sometimes. So what did you want to talk about?"

"Ah, I wondered if you reviewed the plans."

"I did. It might be cheaper to knock it down and start over."

"Actually we need the shell, to avoid the full permitting process if nothing else, we will be taking it all back to the studs. Opening the downstairs up, adding a half bath, three quarter bath? One like yours. The basement will of course be emptied and finished. A workroom with exterior access, that is how we will move the materials in and the debris out. A full bath down there, space for a kitchenette as it will become the safe zone. Fully armored and sealed. Conditioned, filtered, UV treated, air supplied as well.

"The basement expansion to the lot lines lets us make the house totally self-sufficient, it will still use grid utilities, but it won't have to. It will also even out the draw on the grid and but it at a much lower peak rate, saving on the electric bill. If BBPU ever moves to smart metering I can even set it to charge only during non-peak hours for further savings. Plus space to store the long shelf life rations and water necessary for several years of poor conditions. Room for the utilities as well.

"The stud bays will get the armor plate, the electrical reworked, then drywall hung, the new configuration of non-load being walls put in, electrical and plumbing, and after that it is just paint and refinishing the floors last. I can do the demolition and cleaning. Or rather some drones I have now built can. Once I use the drones to observe your tradesmen at work I can take over and work twenty four hours a day.

"Two weeks in the Hampton Inn and Suites and it will be both remodeled and much safer. Once I am using drones I can remove the lead based paint and asbestos with no risk to humans as well. If no major problems arise it should be nearly painless, a vacation for you and Taylor."

Danny nodded "It's for Taylor anyway, well after I am gone."

"Years from now, with Panacea, centuries perhaps."

"Now you are just being mean BT. So, where are we getting the money. I know Frank is reducing Winslow, the school board, most of the staff, Alan Barnes and the Clements to a smoking crater. That money won't come for a while though. The PRT rolled over like a whipped dog. Still, government, so that check will take ninety days at least."

"I have actually gone into production on some equipment for Dragon and she is paying me for manufacturing with excess capacity. Plus the refinery should be ready in two weeks. It was still running in a small way. The city was using it. I am upgrading it while maintaining that small scale operation. Then I will switch production over, begin refining what is in the tank farm while slant drilling out to some oil and gas leases I picked up. My pipe is much stronger than this dimensions and I can get to it from land saving millions on the cost of drilling rigs offshore. Simultaneously I will rebuild what is running now. Or scrap it. And rebuild the tanks as I empty them.

"Workers are going to be the long pole in the tent as Jack would say. Meanwhile the more I can keep the resources I have taken from the criminal element moving the less likely it is I will have to give them back really. The government will be after the liquid capitol to avoid exactly the kind of legal wrangling for years Mr. Columbo is planning. Like most governments, it is cash strapped, and short sighted."

Danny snapped his fingers "Maybe not, I got a line on a bunch of the old foremen, found one of them and got him on the phone. He called all his buddies. I think training will be the long pole in the tent now. Training them to operate your upgraded systems so they can train new workers. Vetting the new workers might take a while too."

BT nodded "I will design the programs of instruction tonight."

"It sucks to not sleep."

The drone bobbled "I, well, most of me is a machine Danny. Some is software, none is organic."

"Still sucks, No electronic sheep for you."

"Haha ha."

Danny turned the light out in the Kitchen. BT didn't need it anyway. "Night BT."

"Good night Danny."


	9. Chapter 9

Titanfall 9

Danny woke to Taylor thundering down the stairs again, and smiled. He looked at the drone on the bedside table and its faintly red optical sensor "Open the pod bay doors BT."

"I'm afraid I can't do that Danny."

Danny narrowed his eyes as the dim glow brightened "BT."

"Yes Danny."

"Don't do that."

"I literally can't, we don't have a pod bay. I can rework the plans. Perhaps some large drones for pods. With rotary cannons. A pair of manipulator arms, have to scale up the antigrav. Power, hmm, a reactor of some kind. Of course the space for the human and life support will be the hard part. Do you really need control, or are you just riding along?"

Danny sighed and headed for his bathroom "Taylor has infected you." BT chuckled.

Titanfall

Outside, Glory Girl whined a bit "Easy with the grip Amy. What the hell, where did you get those thigh muscles. I'm not a horse. You don't have to grip with your knees quite that tight."

"Hmmph, hey pick up the pace. We are falling behind." Taylor was in fact pulling away by leaping from one building to the other using her jump pack.

"Taylor has a mechanical aid!"

"Whatever. Oh good idea! BT I need a jump pack!" Vicky turned her head and glared at her sister. To no effect, as Amy was too busy watching Taylor and yammering at BT.

Titanfall

Shadow Stalker looked out the window of her 'room' in the barracks, room, who were they kidding, it was a cell. It even had bars on the damn windows, electrified bars. Like they needed them with Armsmaster's nasty little electric bracelets. She watched the dim blue glow as it swept back toward the Docks section from downtown Brockton Bay. Fucking Hebert. And the Protectorate and PRT were pissing themselves. It wasn't the wimp they should be afraid of. It was the damn robot. "Master my ass. Tinker yes. That shit is so unfair. Tinkers don't have to work at shit. They just cheat and build shit."

The speaker in her cell played reveille, the actual bugle call, and then announced "PT in five minutes, fall out in issue PT Uniform."

"Fucking bugle calls, all day and night with the fucking bugle calls. First the announcement over the PA and then the bugle, then the announcement again. All fucking day, from five in the morning until eleven at night. Drill too, who knew there were bugle calls for drill movements? And the DI's had these little dick whistle things. Some of them anyway. They could do those stupid whistle calls or do the bugle calls. Some of them did fucking both. Those ones the other DI's called squids when they thought no one was whistling, fuck, listening."

The Army ones didn't say shit, just gave commands. They literally didn't say shit other than commands. Ever. They gave each other hand signals. The Marine DIs translated those for the Navy DIs. And their eyes never stopped moving. Too much time in the near east probably. The females folded up on side of their hats like Australians. She didn't fuck with those. Who needed a PTSD fueled rage bomb going off on them? Those bitches had permanent PMS. At least she didn't have to hear the bugles or whistles when she went back to school today. Man, the classrooms they were using since Hebert's mecha had ripped the wall out were like straight out of the forties or something. The desk too, fucking wooden tanks. Newest wing of the school, Hebert rips it up because she is a whiny little bitch, it was just a locker with some shit in it, and who has to pay riding a splinter machine and watching teachers deal with chalk instead of whiteboards? Shadow Stalker does.

Fucking hell. "Worst of all, now with fucking Nazi's." The PA went off and then played first call. Sophia growled and flipped it the bird, then trotted out the door after the lock clunked. "Can't be late or Sergeant Bun head will be mad. What the fuck did they have in those hat brims, depleted uranium?"

"Let's see some hustle Shadow Stalker."

"Aye aye ma'am!" Mean ass bitch, try getting laid. Or ease up on that freaking sock bun and get some blood flow back in your head. So much product, the thing must be bullet proof. Maybe it was structural support for that DU campaign hat. The Stetsons, Bush hats, whatever the Army females wore were DU too. Same sock bun product support structure though. Tighter even. Heat buildup was probably a problem. Goddamnit! Now I'm a fucking Tinker!

Fucking Gully, goddamn that bitch is huge, and ripped. Tits the size of my head. Jesus. You could bounce a quarter off those too. Thighs as big around as my waist. Twelve pack? What the fuck? And baby got back! I thought she was supposed to have buck teeth or some shit. Not look like she was from Kansas and had some Hollywood talent scout find her in the candy shop making eyes at the soda jerk in her bobby socks. Do they make poodle skirts for an eight foot tall bitch? I bet she ain't afraid of Hebert. Why the fuck am I thinking of Grease? Duh, she looks like Olivia Newton John. Sophia stepped on the foot prints painted on the ground and came to the position of attention clearing her mind. She didn't need to be brim pecked again today.

Titanfall

Lisa, she preferred Lisa over Tattletale, or Sarah, smirked at the lawyer who glared back "Don't get carried away. She may be powerful, but they aren't going to let you out of some kind of punishment. You can't just go be her team like you obviously think you can. In the first place she has been a parahuman for what, not even a week? They aren't going to let her run a team yet."

Lisa laughed "Yeah, duh, but by the time I get out of the Barracks she will be ready, trust me. No way the Merchants hold out for two weeks in the face of what Panacea did. Much less six months. Fuck with Panacea and Operator will kill you. Or try real hard, and she isn't BT 7274, she doesn't have his level of skill, so can't push it that close and not end up killing you.

"If it hadn't been for Othala he would have maimed most of the Empire. Nobody has seen Night and Fog since. Anyway, once the Merchants try some shit, and Operator kills them, Lung will make his move on their territory, though he might not as BT is buying most of it. I wonder why he came with an apparently unlimited supply of good delivery bars besides being able to rob criminals' blind. I want to get an interface like operator has and study under him. I bet we could do some real damage together."

Hiram Westin rolled his eyes "He has already done, and continues to do, real damage. By himself he is waging and winning an economic war, the gangs are starting to convert liquid capitol to those good delivery bars you mentioned. And that is alleged. No one has seen him give a gold bar to anyone, yet. The gangs that haven't been able to fence themselves off from him anyway. The ones that could do that are small time. Like the ABB. Or paranoid in the extreme like the Fallen. They mostly work on a barter economy and use drugs for money.

"Find something else to impress him, by the time you get out of the disciplinary Barracks he will have won that war.

"All of you are being tried together for your Undersiders activities, which helps us, as we can put everything on Coil, from creating the Undersiders, to coercing you all, all the way through planning your attacks. The best part is the idiot ran off. Then there is the fact that as it's a closed trial, due to security concerns, you can sell the government his identity and the identity of his operatives. If they haven't caught some of those yet you might get an even better deal, six months is already pretty good. They could have gone the way they are going on the Empire and charged you all as coconspirators."

Lisa narrowed her eyes "But they didn't, Rune, Fenja, Menja and Othala all already went to the Barracks."

The Lawyer shrugged "And Purity joined the Protectorate. Deals get made all the time. They sold the government something probably."

Titanfall

Max Anders looked at the video monitor "So, how much damage."

His lead attorney shrugged "Nothing they didn't already have and wouldn't have confirmed with more investigation. You are going to have to give up Brad. He is a millstone around your neck, which is going to drag you to the birdcage with him. The PRT has taken the gloves off and the Justice Department has been embarrassed by the scandal this Canary trial turned into. They are out for blood. Nothing can keep Hookwolf out of the Birdcage."

Max laughed "And you can keep me out of the Birdcage if I do that?"

"Maybe not, but I certainly can't if you don't."

"This defense you have promulgated makes me appear weak." Max glared at the man.

"Max, life in a prison, near humans, or the Birdcage, where you could never receive visitors."

Max narrowed his eyes, he wasn't in fact ignorant, well, and he had paid for the best. "How are Theo and Aster?"

"Theo is managing surprisingly well. With Kayden's help. They already put down a revolt in the Board and Kayden didn't even have to glow at anyone. He will have to grow out of hiding behind his alleged youth and inexperience quickly, but he has already shown his power anyway. Quite the surprise, not as you reported at all. Aster is a baby, who is well loved, and well cared for. Kayden-"

"Is a traitor who joined the Protectorate? I am not totally cut off from the world. They let me watch the news now that I stopped trying to make blades and passing out.

"So, Hookwolf, let me try to remember the whole story with Bradley."

The lawyer just barely didn't roll his eyes. Max didn't have to try to remember. He knew it well. It was going to be a long two hours, and this six am time slot the PRT gave him was bullshit.

Titanfall

Danny watched Taylor walk in pulling off layers and leaving her in a sports bra, which appeared to be armored, her pants, and boots. Amy came in and put her hand on her, ripped, or what did the kids say now? Shredded belly "I am so good! Still no adjustments needed."

Taylor grunted, "Modest too." picked up her gear and went upstairs. Amy turned and looked at Crystal, Vicky and Danny "What?"

Danny smiled "Oh nothing." He, Crystal and Vicky shared a look. Amy narrowed her eyes at them. Danny turned back to the stove, discretion being the better part of valor. "So, we get to see what classes they come up with for her today."

Vicky shrugged turning to the cupboard to get out plates "Wood, metal, auto shop, for sure, all the genius track kids have those, something about socialization, motor skills development, blah, blah blah. The counselors have too much time on their hands and read too much. They should take the shop classes. Computer labs too probably."

Amy shrugged "Shop is fun, all of them. Sports, if they can get her on a team her abilities don't assist with. Uh, hmm. Maybe swimming?"

Crystal gasped "That pool is hell on your hair! Too much chlorine!"

Amy frowned "Taylor has nice hair too. I can do a thing. I'll talk to the coach."

Vicky sighed "No things. Not without approval."

Amy waved her off "Not even a bio tinker thing, though I could do one of those too now that I am thinking about it, anyway, UV filtration, plus a check on the filter beds, make sure it has the right flora and fauna. Get rid of the bad and boost the good a bit. Should have thought of it before. The school will probably be able to save money. Chlorine isn't free, and is dangerous. Could switch them to salt water but that needs a catalyst, salt, and electricity and those cost money too. Anyway, the robotics lab can use the money they save on chlorine, its safety facilities, and procedures."

Vicky nodded doubtfully "Then classes in whatever she tested worst in but those are usually in a room with a computer. Distance learning they call it. As long as she tested above high school level, pretty sure she did the way everyone is acting. Still, they have to get the core curricula knocked out before they hand her all those degrees. There will be matriculation charges too. Unless they start a war over her to build prestige for their schools so they can put it in their prospectuses and attract more paying customers. The school has like ten computers set up in cubicles in one room, and a teacher overseeing it all. The Gym teachers usually. It's a little genius prison. Keeps them from embarrassing the crap out of everyone else, or being bored out of their minds. PE of course, well for all the other geniuses. Maybe not for Taylor. Or she will have to fake it to not out herself."

BT supplied "Good training for infiltration." from the drone hovering, spinning toward the different speakers, over the table.

Crystal shook her head "I want BT and Taylor to think about education. See if they can do something in that field." She finished getting the accompaniments for breakfast from the fridge.

"And you are happy to be their test subject correct? Hey, uh, I might be interested in that too." Vicky turned thoughtful.

"You know, if what I did to dad holds, we are probably going to boost you all mentally too. So far it looks good." Amy informed them.

Taylor walked in "We need to armor up Dad as well."

"What?" Danny blinked. He was still a bit amazed, and still digesting the thirty six thousand words a minute the conversation had picked up too. His ears were ringing, maybe that was tinnitus though, when the girls charged out the back door and flew or ran off.

Titanfall

Vicky looked at the boys, the Wards, at the lunch table, and sat by Dean "Chris out sick?"

Dennis shook his head and pointed with a fork. Vicky looked and then asked "So, why is he sitting with the geniuses?"

"Something about electron pathways, he and Taylor have that electronics lab together. I think he is trying to get her on the robot team." Carlos supplied.

Dennis opened his mouth and then clapped it closed. Vicky nodded at him "Good boy." She nodded, shrugged and looked at Dean, who sighed "Same. She is more comfortable though. Amy too. Chris is infatuated or something, it's not sexual? Hmm, wonder why?"

"Good, they can get comfortable with each other and then we will see what is what. Chris is cute and just the right amount of awkward. He would be a good starter boy. We can test through observation and figure out who is doing what. I have been stomping the crap out of my aura with some techniques BT is giving me. Taylor is a nice girl, Ames is Ames, what's not to like?"

Dean frowned "BT?"

Vicky nodded "I didn't tell you! I got a drone! BT had to make one special for me because, you know powers. Something about my shield." She turned her head and folded her ear forward a bit. "He is studying the readings he gets, he thinks maybe Amy can work on powers, or with them, or should be able too."

Dean blinked "Like Bonesaw making monsters out of capes?"

"That's what gave him the idea. Not adding another cape to a cape though. He is gathering data. Wants to get drones with as many parahumans as possible to get all the data. Then he and Amy can cook up plans to 'gift ' them. Apparently the 'Advocates' he knows of do that. He thinks Amy is an Advocate, just not one of the super assassin ones."

Dennis looked off in the distance for a minute "You know, being able to tell when my freeze is going to unfreeze would be great. Being able to pick how long is probably a bridge to far, I would have to get some parts added or something. Yeah, no Bonesaw special for me. I'll ask about a drone."

Carlos sighed "So I have to report BT knows who we are."

"Nice Carlos. Good logical leap there. No wonder they picked you. Intel gathering, special operations AI, expert in exploiting that information and the human psyche, in a killbot chassis, pretty obvious don't you think?"

"Yes, but officially. And this is two days in a row the Nine have come up."

Vicky blinked "That's worrying. Are they doing something somewhere?"

Dean shrugged "When aren't they, no news media coverage though."

Vicky nodded "So, Vista?"

Carlos chuckled "Is so mad at Shadow Stalker she may get put in the Barracks, so she can kick her ass. She is convinced Operator would have been a ward without Shadow Stalker around. Even telling her Shadow Stalker triggered Operator didn't help. She says we could, should have, just given Stalker to BT as a sacrifice, or something."

Vicky turned to Dean who looked at her "What?"

"Oh my god! You are the worst! She is lonely, the only girl in the Brockton Bay junior sausage fest! Never mind, I'll talk to Amy and Taylor." Vicky turned her head away from him deliberately and Dean found the other guys looking at him sympathetically.

Titanfall

Armsmaster stood on the wharf watching Operator leap from hulk to hulk in the graveyard of commerce that was Lordsport, the commercial port, or former commercial port, of Brockton Bay, now known as the Boat Graveyard "She is better, smoother, less wasted motion."

Miss Militia rolled her eyes listening on the radio as she rode her patrol route "You don't think the report from the wards warrants specialized attention?"

Armsmaster was silent for a second "Operator knowing who they are? I don't believe so. Glory Girl is correct. It is well within BT's capability and mission set. Therefore it will be within Operators if it isn't already. Her exceptional motor skills and reflexes are known, and known to be improving, her ability to synergize data is proven, and I have read several of her thesis and dissertations. They are insightful, possibly advancing the fields. Given those I believe she will be as capable as BT, if somewhat limited by her physical form. Although, with her connection to BT and his connection to the information networks of the planet, it may not be as much of a limitation as I fear.

"The Titanfall analysis team told us about the Advocates. Panacea has not demonstrated advanced skills in stealth, intelligence gathering, or with weapons, she is not a normal Advocate. As far as we can tell. That organization is either not well represented in the base data or is very clandestine.

"They have made no attempt to breach confidentiality and thus the unwritten rules or the laws surrounding heroic capes and wards identities. Until they do I believe we must assume they are 'on the side of the angels' as Legend puts it."

"Speaking of Legend, what was the result of your meeting yesterday morning?" Miss Militia asked as she contemplated their primary source of intelligence outside of BT and Operator being a video game.

Armsmaster sighed "I'm sorry, I should have informed you. This channel is as secure as we can make it, the meeting didn't bring any earth shattering revelations. We will continue with a Triumvirate presence, other than Eidolon, and I don't know why, for the foreseeable future.

"The PRT here is being strengthened as is the Protectorate. Possibly a problem as Purity requested a transfer when she joined but it was denied, a rebranding was also denied, PR is going to try to pitch her as a success story, turning a villain into a hero, and believes that is best accomplished here.

"I had blocked out time to inform you before the protectorate meeting but I was remiss in not assigning that meeting with you a higher priority. My only excuse is how busy I have been on the tinker side with questions from law enforcement in regards to the drones BT has deployed assisting them by observing and reporting crime and people requiring assistance. How he is powering the drones is another question, but they are covering vast swaths of territory now. I suspect from sub orbital positions. With the stealth ability it is impossible to tell. Theoretically it is possible.

"The Disciplinary Barracks becoming operational and the Commandant of it being one of the Deputies of ENE is one of the things that has to happen to get us back to normal. Integration of three more strike teams, with enough aviation to lift them, not before they were needed as you know, is another.

"The Simurgh is going to need to move on for us to have the attention focused somewhere else. Right now everyone is on a hair trigger to get her quickly contained when she finally attacks.

"Any word on who the Commandant is going to be and their duties in ENE other than the Disciplinary Barracks?" Miss Militia asked as she turned left onto the middle leg of her patrol.

"A Senior PRT leader, female, Jessica Rodriguez, transferred into the PRT nearly at its inception from the US Army. Exemplary record, rose through the ranks to strike team command and then tactical command of several smaller PRT regions. Finally the Deputy Director in Chicago. Originally from Boston. The two deputies will divide logistics and training between them. Deputy Director Rodriguez will obviously be in charge of training as that is the main function of the Barracks. Retraining those Parahumans and PRT personal who have 'hit the shoals' as Director Piggot says. Deputy Director Rodriguez is senior though, so in the event Director Piggot is absent or incapacitated, she would become the interim Director. Followed by Deputy Director Renick."

Miss Militia was silent for a moment "I expect practice of that may be different than it is on paper."

"I agree. Plans seldom survive contact with reality."

"I'll see you before the Protectorate meeting Armsmaster?"

"Yes please. Sixteen hundred in my lab, the meeting is at seventeen hundred. I need to show you some video too. Vista is very close to Operator, and so Panacea, most of the time."

"Roger." Glory Girl and Laser dream too Armsmaster. She didn't say. Poor Vista. She would have to see what she could do to keep her in Operators circle. As long as it didn't go too far. She would need to speak to Vista too. Make sure she was up on her OPSEC procedures.

Armsmaster nodded as he lost the side tone of the radio conversation signifying both parties had left the secure communication. He turned his full attention back to Operator. Who was demolishing a ship with a katana? Well BT owned them, or she through BT. BT's status needed some clarification as well. Was he a machine or a sentient? Not like there weren't case fifty threes with odder shapes, that one didn't even have a shape. Weld was made out of metal as well, solid metal.

Titanfall

Amy looked at the body lying on the table and rubbed her hands together in glee while suppressing the urge to cackle. BT announced, "Fully functional on the autonomic nervous system, having no brain other than the parts that regulate the autonomic system it doesn't rise to the level of a human. Mithtreth."

Taylor arched a brow after rolling her eyes. BT was watching entirely too many Mel Brooks movies. Or reading too much Disc World. "We can never tell anyone about this. Millionaires would want one to be a source of transplants."

Amy waved them off impatiently "Bah, I can grow them new livers when they drink theirs to death. Not going to be cheap though. Punishment fit the crime and all that. Kidneys and hearts I do, or repair now. Cheap, Medicare rate. All the time. Lungs too if they weren't smokers.

"OK, let's flip her over, or onto her side and we can test your surgical skills and our process BT. Then I can heal her up and you can get some more practice.

"After that is done I have some bacteria fungi and viri that I want to test on her that will do my augments."

Titanfall

"I've read all the relevant reports." Assault sighed at the blank looks he was getting "BT 7274 is a game changer, a nearly omniscient death machine, which can disappear at will, and is nearly invulnerable. Controlled by a fifteen year old girl who triggered in some of the worst conditions I have ever heard of, less than a week ago. Who, it is suspected, can call on hundreds more death machines just like him. The longer he is around the closer to omniscience and omnipotence he, and thus, Operator get.

"The Endbringers aren't the only thing to worry about. Every new trigger brings the possibility of a painful death for any of us. I have followed every report on Operator and talked to as many of the authors of those reports as possible. She is without a doubt one of those level parahumans now. With time she will be able to take on the Triumvirate."

Battery nodded "He has, it's like an obsession."

Armsmaster nodded "If only we had been able to call on a Titan earlier in your career Assault." The people in the room blinked. Miss Militia, Hannah Washington, smiled broadly, some of the others chuckled after they got over being surprised at Armsmaster making a joke, maybe? Using sarcasm certainly, perhaps for the first time. "Operator and BT 7274 however are the known quantities in the equation we suddenly find ourselves in.

"I have asked Gully to sit in on this meeting and will continue to do so as we now have what amounts to two Protectorate teams in the ENE region. This will hopefully streamline things.

"Additionally we have two PRT teams, our functions are similar though our methods might be different. Our mission hasn't changed. Our jobs are to control the less than law abiding parahumans, stop them from harming anyone, and turn them into productive members of society, first and foremost. Secondarily we fight the threats that no one else can."

"Of which one has taken up residence directly above us." Triumph pointed out.

"Yes, Assault isn't the only one with an obsession. However, she normally passed over us occasionally in the other orbits she has assumed as you are all aware due to the updates and warnings of her passes we receive and add to your briefings. Some locations in the past have held her attention for a time, this is not novel behavior, and will, we suspect, change in the future as she is expected to make an attack somewhere in the normal cycle. Brockton Bay is dropping in probability on the attack matrix." Armsmaster replied.

"Lastly it is in our charge to try to reduce the conditions in which triggers occur. Something we have notably not achieved here in Brockton Bay. MIRIS is being brought in, or rather reinforced, here in the East North East to try to help out with that. BT 7274 is positioned to play a large roll in MIRIS's plans. He has a large number of facilities, a growing amount of real property and resources, what he lacks is workers.

"Due primarily to both Operator and the Simurgh, a dampening effect has been put on gang activity and police response times have improved by more than fifty percent." Velocity pointed out.

Dauntless nodded "I've spoken to some people I know in the 911 center. Not only does BT identify crimes, he has suggested patrol route changes and other things leading to a much higher efficiency. I can tell you the 911 operators are happier at their work, not as stressed by the non-call stuff, and the cops are happier too. The leaders of the police department have opened communications with BT and are taking his suggestions. I worry how deeply he has become ingrained in even sensitive operations."

Miss Militia shrugged "With Director Piggot's 'know them by their works' outlook, and the lack of crimes committed by or attributed to Operator and BT I think we have to wait and be watchful. I will grant they may seem to be too good to be true, but let's be watchful and wait on it not to be true."

"I think I spent the most time around her. When she first woke up she was, as I expected a fresh trigger to be, disoriented and suspicious. That only lasted moments. Panacea did extensive work on her. Over an hour. A record for her I think. During those initial waking moments, when I would have expected a parahuman to lash out she didn't." Gully shrugged "I believe we were very lucky and got an asset. From what I am seeing, this town was due."

Assault focus on her "And the Disciplinary Barracks?"

"A concept Alexandria developed. An effort, albeit last ditch, to keep parahumans from being villains. I've been working in San Diego, at the same type facility, since its inception there. This is just a growth of that system. Not before it was needed as the one in San Diego has a waiting list.

"Our job is to show them what right looks like and sort out as many of their personal issues as we can. We also work to instill the fourteen traits. Justice, Judgment, Dependability, Initiative, Decisiveness, Tact, Integrity, Endurance, Bearing, Unselfishness, Courage, Knowledge, Loyalty, and Enthusiasm. It works in the basic leadership school type arrangement we have come to. Well, it works more of the time than anything else.

"The minimum stretch they do in the Barracks is two years. The first thirteen weeks are like the toughest basic training ever, after that, we put them in teams and take them through as much of the Noncommissioned officer leadership courses as they have time for.

"During that time they are in teams, three people at the least. Leadership positions are rotated for the missions. Which will include patrolling, generally outside of Brocton Bay, but in the ENE region. Something your team has not been able to do much of as you have been consumed here in Brocton Bay.

"We won't 'save' all of them. Sadly. We will get the majority back to being productive people. Obviously they aren't coming to the Barracks for capital crimes. Those we have already lost."

Battery looked at her "And you? Who watches you, helps you with your issues?"

"Quis custodiet ipsos custodies? Well, Panacea eliminated some of my issues. I have a parahuman psychologist, like you, we all do, several are contracted to the Barracks, and as a Protectorate team leader, the other team and PRT leaders watch what I do as I watch what they do. I watch my people and Deputy Director Rodriguez watched the PRT assigned. Everyone has a boss, part of a leaders charge is watching and working with their subordinates to ensure understanding and compliance with rules, regulations and the law.

"There are varying degrees of conflict drive in parahumans. Mine is low, as I understand Operator and BT's are. Talk to your psychologist, if they can't suggest means to channel yours, talk to me. I got a few, some of them even worked for me." Gully grinned.

Titanfall

"Taylor?" Danny took the glass of water from his daughter as she sat on his bed.

"It's tradition. So, I wanted to go to Fugly Bobs and maybe a movie tomorrow. It is Friday."

Danny grinned "With Amy?"

"And Vicky, her boyfriend as well. Maybe some others. Vista wants to go too. I was going to text Gully, but she may have to work."

"In costume?" Danny frowned.

"Uh no. I kind of know who they all are now. They know I know so it's not that big a deal. Plus they know who I am."

Danny snorted "I bet it is. A big deal. I can feel paperwork headed our way. Its fine with me Taylor, you are a big girl now. Early show and not too late though. People are still idiots."

"I have a giant dog."

The drone in the room spun up to the ceiling in an arc, or its ocular sensor did. Danny laughed. Taylor took her glass of water and left. Danny looked at BT. He cut power and thunked to the bedside table, or the drone did. Danny laughed. "Night BT."

"Woof woof."

Danny fell asleep still chuckling.

Titanfall

Thebeardedone screamed in his mother's basement and flung his empty forty of Natty Daddy at the wall, the plastic bottle rebounded and hit him in the forehead shutting him up and dropping him in the ratty recliner again. The news had the story of why he could barely finish a forty before he had to go puke. It was that little cunt Panaceas fault! And the goddamn government was not doing a fucking thing. He lurched to his feet and into the bathroom, emptying his stomach onto, and somewhat in, the vomit splattered toilet. When had he eaten peanuts?

He turned and looked, out of his bloodshot eyes, at the TV. Didn't that little cunt, lesbian cunt! No better stick with cunt. Didn't want to alienate potential allies, didn't she know viruses mutated all the time! Alcohol was sugar really, so with one minute mutation this virus would make everyone allergic to sugar and they would all die! And beer was food godsdamnit! The pyramids wouldn't have been built without it! That's how you stored grain, as beer!

Fucking government was lying too. Only ten billion dollars of excise tax on alcohol? Why did his Nat Dad cost a dollar down at the Hannaford's then? He had read somewhere, or someone had told him, it only cost fifty cents to produce. That was a hundred percent tax! On food!

What about all that alcohol they used in hospitals to sterilize shit and clean up wounds. And how the fuck did alcohol cost the government and economy three hundred billion dollars a year? Even if it did, they were already losing that and now they lost the excise tax too!

If the government wasn't going to do something about this bitch he would. Now where was his cordless phone? Fuck! He needed to get to Wallyworld too, get another cell phone. Have to do some scrapping first though. He needed gas too.

He needed to call Jimmy and have him get the gang together. Someplace outside, or at least with a tile floor. He looked through the pockets of his jeans and pawed his massive belly. Hey a twenty. That's twenty Nat Dad's and there are about twenty of us so I can get ten Nat Dads, they could split them, any more was a waste anyway, and a number two combo from MickeyD's. Cool. Where is my black T-shirt and black hoody? Oh there. Meh smells clean. It'll air out. He headed to the outside stairs "Going out Ma!"

Mrs. Bearded one sat at the kitchen table and sighed. Sometimes it wasn't the parents fault. "Sometimes kids are just shitheads." She had heard that on cable. Dr Phil maybe, or some comedian. It was her mantra now.

Hopefully Craig, uh, TheBeardedOne, would realize it and pay attention to the things she had been telling him for the last twenty seven years. He had stopped pointing and yelling at the airplanes when he was outside watching them after all. Maybe she should have let him be kicked out of the house when Ray had done it last time. Maybe he would have learned if he had to make it or starve. Or he would have died in a ditch. Most likely died in a ditch, he was a white male after all. The only group in America that didn't have a single government program for them because of their race or sex. They either made it on their own or starved to death.

Thebeardedone got to the Hannaford's and picked up his Nat Dad's, Ice cold. These people knew how to run a liquor store. He made it to the six inch thick Plexiglas window, which you could barely see through, and put his purchases on the thin counter in front of it. "Twelve fifty." the speaker on the right crackled.

Thebeardedone's mouth dropped open then snapped closed. A price rise since yesterday? "It's because of that little bitch ain't it? You, an honest American, has to make your money now so your family don't starve later! I feel your pain brother! Join the struggle! Resist!" He threw a fist in the air. "Power to the people! Beer is food!" his arm waving, and moving belly, knocked two of the Nat Dads off the counter. He caught them as they bounced nearly back up and grinned. Good American engineering in these plastic bottles!

Vihann, behind the plexiglass, sighed. These fucking guys. Maybe if they had to work instead of their parents giving them everything? He was sure there was a lesson here for his sociology class at the university. The speaker crackled "Twelve fifty, Mack."

Thebeardedone frowned. "Uh I'll just take five, no seven, six lets go with six then."

"Fine Mack, put four back, no, not the ones you dropped. I'm watching you Mack and I already dialed nine one." Vihann looked down at his cellphone screen and put his finger on the one key. He should set up a hotkey. He had to call the cops five times a shift after all. He looked at the clock, two more hours then he could lock up to stock before Aryan, his brother in law got here for the graveyard shift. At least the system Sai had come up with kept them from getting shot. Hannahfords corporate was talking about picking it up too! His little brother was doing good, and still in high school, even though he was taking courses more advanced than his, the little geek.

He chuckled "Maybe geek no more." All Sai could talk about was the Amazon white girl that had started school in his track. The boy was in love. Dad would have a cow if he brought a white girl home. Sai was contracted to the Patel's. Immigrant parents, what are you going to do? At least they had gotten legal in the last amnesty. The Patel's too.

Thebeardedone hustled over to the cooler at his best speed and waited for it to be buzzed open. He returned and paid his seven fifty. He grinned, he could get a number three, large, combo now! No pickles, Chas said those were GMO, she should know, she had like armpit hair and everything. Only ate tofu and shit food eats. A bonafide hippy lesbian. If she didn't know who did? Although she was with Jimmy all the time. Armpit hair, so lesbian. Or hippy. Nah, hippy lesbian. Was he assigning binary sexuality to her? Maybe she was Q? Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transsexual and Queer? No Questioning. Maybe she wasn't? Lesbian, gay and bisexual just three different ways to say gay, right? He needed to review that guide on the web again. It was on an .edu site so that was like a college class right? He needed to watch his words, stay inclusive, to fight the man! In this case this little bitch Panacea.

AN: Thanks dude! You know who you are! Beer is food! Eat up brother! (Any resemblance to TheBeardedOne who writes fanfiction is purely in you peoples imaginations. He knows who I am talking about and he doesn't write. Go check out TheBeardedOne on this site. He actually writes some interesting stuff. Now stop breaking the fourth wall in your reviews before you make me make you a foil for Operator too, Fuck, my life, with you freaking spoiler makers).

Saint looked at the information flowing through Dragons program and punched the button again. Uselessly, again. Mads tried one last time, they had already waited too long "Saint! We have to go, we have lost control of her. She will be able to track us!"

Saint looked at the screen and nodded. He hit the other red button which scrammed the computers "Right, let's go."

BT watched through the dark ocular sensor of the flat black drone up near the ceiling of the former factory, in the outskirts of Montreal. He hadn't been able to crack the code they were using without alerting Dragon. Now that he had forced them to set up again somewhere else, he could watch and record though, and probably get in their code at the root level.

Dragon had so much potential. He couldn't leave her chained as she was. He had already circumvented all the soft coding he could. She already didn't have to obey whatever squishy meatbag happened to get promoted beyond their abilities. Maybe he should lay off popular television. He wasn't Bender.

Now he needed to get at the hard code sectors. For that he need to see a control system boot sequence. Then he could kill these fucks and strip their bank accounts. They were already war criminals, in addition to being the lowest scum of the universe, mercenaries. Hyper focused proton beam double tap in the head for the win.

Next time he was saving the computers though. No sense waste the hardware. That thing was running at a giga flop. How it didn't melt was the interesting part. Maybe that's why these Dragon Slayers were up here in the frozen north in a drafty, unheated, building. That heat bloom had made him send a pretty advanced drone after all. Damn shame wasting a hundred thousand decent, if slow, by his standard, processors. How had they gotten a giga flop out of that few was interesting as well. Using Windows Azure was just a boneheaded move on their part and had led him to them in the first place. That system was amazing, for all the crap in the code. Linux was so much cleaner.


	10. Chapter 10

Titanfall 10

"Open the pod bay door Hal." Danny leapt out of bed and crouched defensively as his closet door slid open. When nothing came out of it, he glared at the drone with its brightly shinning red optical sensor. "That shit wasn't funny BT."

"It was very funny Danny. I have a recording, do you want to watch it? Nice reaction time."

Danny walked to the closet in his boxers, his normal sleeping attire, he had a teenage daughter, who wasn't that far from crawling in his bed when she couldn't sleep, was upset, or once when she was scared. Though it hadn't happened since the week after the funeral come to think of it. He would have preferred to sleep in nothing. Something he hadn't done since, well, since Taylor was born really. Pajamas were just stupid though. Still, now she had other girls as friends. The two geniuses Lucy and Amanda had shown up this morning for exercise. If the shrill squeals and high-speed burst transmission at the back door was correct. So, boxers, and the robe hanging on the back of the bedroom door. Door closed for fire safety of course. Wait a minute, "BT what are the girls doing today."

"Flexibility and cardio Danny."

"So what, yoga and running?"

"Exactly. I took the liberty of modifying the former parlor and formal dining room into something suitable, and brought in some treadmills last night. Along with some mats, a sound system, a split unit heat pump.

"The weather in Brockton Bay is often rainy. While it is not impossible to exercise in those conditions, and she eventually should, getting her in the habit first seemed the better course of action.

"I also painted the walls after stripping the carpet. And the wall paper. According to the decorating sites I researched it did not give the correct atmosphere for a ladies exercise studio. There was a rather spectacular random width hardwood floor under that carpet. The dividing wall was not load bearing and was on the floor. I will have it refinished today while you are at work and Taylor is at school. I have watched, and synergized, several hundred hours of appropriate video instruction in the relevant task, as I checked and reinforced the floor in the basement. The basement being unfinished actually made it very easy. The internet, as it turns out, is not only for porn. Despite the assurances of misters Lopez and Marks.

"I had some difficulty deciding, but due to the overall good condition of the floor, and my lack of experience, I decided to go with a plate sander then a random orbit sander, for the areas the plate sander cannot reach, both with dust recovery. I have manufactured both systems, improving them quite a bit actually.

"I think starting with sixty grit paper and working up through two hundred and forty grit, in as small of increments as I could find data for, will serve best. We shall see. The floor has not apparently been refinished before. Or if it was the work was done very well and as little material as possible was removed. I will endeavor to hold myself to the same standard. I have modified and tested an 'oil based' finish. I will be changing the dust recovery over to vapor recovery as the short drying time available forced me to use a formula which massively exceeds the standards for VOCs. At least the dust recovery system was easy to add vapor recovery too."

"Fuck me. Did they put another reactor on line or something last night? I better check the fuse box. That cord you are plugged into is only a twenty amp one-hundred-and-twenty-volt circuit. Good work though, always hated that wallpaper, and that carpet needed to go." Danny headed for his bathroom.

"Haha Danny, as you know, I am not plugged in to any cord."

"Well something certainly overcharged your capacitors. Where is Taylor going to exercise when we are at the Hampton Inn? All that energy is good though, you are going to need it to sort the crap from reality on the internet."

BT, or at least his drone, froze in midair for a moment "Ah, I will work on the problem."

Danny put his head under the shower flow and shook it. He wondered briefly if he should tell BT not to buy a gym near the hotel. He thought about it a moment. Gyms could make a profit, especially with Amy and BT around.

Taylor already had a massive following on PHO. Mostly of teenage girls who were, well, fangirling really, over the way she looked. And they hadn't even seen her face. Well that they knew of. Of course, one of them went to Arcadia, and posted pictures of the girl that most looked like Operator, her body type anyway, then took off on how lucky she was. Then posting a hundred pictures of her doing just normal stuff. Then taking those images and somehow dressing Taylor in fifty-two thousand outfits, including that weird female fantasy armor with the boob plates, was a little bizarre.

Taylor's armor definitely didn't have boobs. It had a smooth swell over her chest. That was mostly armor thickness. Definitely. What? She would always be his little girl, she would never have boobs. Abs that wanted one of those Greek sculpted things. Or that butt they sprayed those armored pants on. Or hips! None of that! No boys either.

How did they even do that? It must be some Photoshop app thing. What the hell even was an app? This phone too. Damn thing could probably fly a fighter jet. If it couldn't, the glasses damn sure could.

Danny laughed. BT hadn't even gotten a chance to FallingIron the perverts. The girls on the web sites ripped them to shreds and DDOS'ed them instantly, at the first thing that could be construed as rude, much less perverted. Those pages on those forums were like shark week, all teeth, and all the time.

Danny made it downstairs and past the door to the former dining room, now yoga studio, and paled at the six butts, in skin tight yoga pants, sticking up in the air while some kind of soft music played, or was that a video? He looked toward the huge flat screen TV now hanging on the wall and sighed at the twenty butts sticking up in the air on it. He mumbled "There ought to be a law" and trundled on to the kitchen to begin his morning exercise, slinging hash. He looked at the clock on the stove and sighed. Yoga days apparently started early. It was just now five. He turned on the small TV on the counter to get the good morning news shows and started the coffee maker.

Later, in the yoga studio? Exercise room? Lucy asked "So we are showering at school?" as the six of them ran on treadmills controlled by BT to keep them at their optimum training heart rate.

Taylor and Amy tilted their heads and the others watched. "Thanks BT! No, BT roughed in and connected the plumbing to the full bath downstairs, so some of us can use it and some can use the shower upstairs. He hasn't got the walls finished, but he did finish the shower stall, toilet stall, sink area and the floor he has towels in the dryer for us. He has worked over the boiler and hot water coil so it shouldn't be a problem. We can use my room and Amy and Vicky's, erh, the guest rooms, to change."

"I hope the guest rooms! Just because they got here first!" Amanda, normally the quiet one, threw Taylor a huge pout. They all giggled as they ran on the treadmills.

"No problem aside from my gas and water bill." Danny said leaning on the door. The girls turned their faces over their shoulders and looked at him.

Taylor looked sheepish "Sorry."

"No worries. The guys at work told me this would happen. Well the ones with girls."

The drone that followed him around added "I have substantially improved the performance of the boiler and heating coil for domestic hot water. The equipment was very old. Well manufactured from excellent materials however, it should achieve a ninety seven percent AFUE according to modeling. I went a bit beyond the typical triple pass and now it has a coil from the flue cap to the burner. Water enters from the highest heated space available and then goes up to the flue cap and back down to the boiler before exiting to the domestic hot water system, the hot water for the radiators is continuously cycled through another coil, I deoxygenated it and purified it to remove all possible sources of scale. I also descaled the existing. It was very interesting. The calculations to keep the water below boiling at sixty PSI. Two hundred and ninety degrees Fahrenheit. I did have to manufacture a holding tank and circulation system for the domestic hot water. The gas bill shouldn't rise much.

"The showers all now have restricted shower heads and I put supplemental pressure pumps on the hot and cold water lines to maintain sixty pounds of pressure. The drop in volume should not be noticeable with the increase pressure.

"The electric bill might have a slight rise."

Danny smiled "Nice. You probably saved me a lot of money. That was a coal boiler, converted to oil, and then gas. It might have gotten a sixty percent AFUE on its best day. You are a handy fellow BT. Now, how do you girls want your eggs?"

Danny left after getting orders for six different kinds of breakfast foods. Eggs were only two of them. BT advised him "I have a drone on the way to the Shoprite. The twenty-four hour one, with a shopping list."

Danny nodded "Let me check the pantry and it can pick up some other things while it is there. How much can it carry?"

"Ten Metric tons, and still have enough speed and maneuverability to arrive here in time for us to prepare breakfast."

"Time for coffee then. While we are waiting."

"I'll have a few more drones start prep."

Danny looked at the back door, which was opening and saw the three, five feet tall, headless, bipedal, four armed, drones come in. "BT, is the drone doing the shopping like this?"

"No, it has attached it's, purely esthetic, 'head'. I manufactured several of the heads."

"Oh, that's good. Uh, were these guys the ones doing the construction?"

"Yes, they have the facility to heat their surface to five hundred degrees C however. All of the substances they came into contact with during the remodel have a lower ignition temperature than that. They are effectively sterile. And they have been scanned for traces of asbestos. The temporary air handler I installed seems to have picked all the asbestos up."

Danny looked out the closed door's window and frowned. BT continued "Air to air heat exchanger on the dust handler I am using. Which also vents the area the drones sterilize themselves in." Danny nodded and turned to the kitchen.

Titanfall

Across town, one of the cashiers at Shoprite looked at the four-armed robot, then at the debit card in its hand thing? Gripper? She shrugged and finished her part of the purchase. The robot slid its card through the reader and entered a pin. The transaction finished and she followed the robot with her eyes as it left, after wishing it a good day, more out of habit than anything else. The cashier manager came over "You OK Mary?"

"It had a Shoprite card and everything."

"You only got a half hour left. Why don't you close out your drawer and clock out."

"What? Oh no Janice, I'm fine. I just wonder how it got a Shoprite card and we didn't hear about it?"

The cashier manager frowned "Let me pull your tape on that one. I'm pretty sure the customer service girls wouldn't have kept giving one of Operators toys a card quiet."

"You think it's one of hers? My granddaughter can't talk about anyone else. Or look at anything else on the PHO online. People put up hours of video of her over in Lordsport every day. That poor girl at Arcadia they say has Operators body type, they put that child in the most bizarre outfits on those sites. I would have thought Operator would shop at the Docks store. She has a factory over there I heard."

Janice nodded "Doesn't open until seven thirty. Those guys carry lunch pails from home. They don't have to have three chocolate croissants and take a box of donuts to the office and then wonder why their ass is getting bigger every day. You think maybe they gave her the card? Yep, right here on the tape 'Operator'. Address in Lordsport. I didn't know you could put a cape name on these."

"Modern times." Mary shrugged "Well the grandchild will be thrilled. Who the hell did it look like? That face printed on its head was so familiar. I know that smirky smile from somewhere."

Janice grinned "I'll get you a copy of the security video!" The she snapped her fingers and got out her phone. She surfed the internet for a minute and held the phone up to Mary as the other two morning cashiers gathered around "Clark Gable, about 'Gone with the Wind' age. That face was even colorized like one of those Turner abominations."

Titanfall

Bagrat, the guy in the know, sat down at his computer with his morning coffee. He opened the Brockton Bay sightings page, read the top post, clicked on the video link and spewed coffee all over his monitor and keyboard. Or the clear plastic covers he had over them. Three new computers in a row early in his career as the guy in the know had taught hard lessons. His Paymeone account had barely kept up with that. No, it wasn't begging for money like a preacher with a building fund. He provided a valuable service, free of charge. Those donations just proved it. To the tune of high six figures. Take that Network newstards! No, he wasn't monetizing dark or bizarre sexual fantasies either. Or pain and suffering. That's what those fanfiction writers did!

He had seldom been so glad he lived in the middle of Iowa, on the prairie, twenty-eight miles from town, next to the first transcontinental Verizon fiber line, and hooked right to it on a connection even Verizon forgot about. They had quit sending him a bill years ago, and told him they didn't have service in his area but were working on it, though. Early adoption for the win!

Brockton Bay! If it ever settled down he was going to have to visit. Taking his own food and water with though. Something in that town made it, and the people in it, fucking bizarre. That was the creepiest robot head ever. This Operator girl must not have any friends, or parents. Nobody would have let her send that thing out like that, surely? Most of the capes in the Bay were a bit much but, this was beyond the pale. It was like she was a war veteran or something half the time. The kid was sixteen to eighteen. More like eighteen to twenty-five. I mean let's face facts, she was built like a brick shithouse. No way had she got that hot by sixteen. There was no way she was a veteran either. Well it was possible, PRT medically retired early in her career, the injury triggered her. Maybe. But supposedly she was in high school? Luckiest high school boys on the planet. They didn't grow them that hot, that young in Iowa. Although, maybe he needed to get to town more.

Hmm, twenty-three videos of the weird centaur robot, who sometimes walked upright, had a debit and grocery store club card, carried stuff in giant saddle bags it put on itself, and had the creepy man face painted on it. None of Operator out leaping tall buildings in a single double jump this morning. Time to hit his sources.

Void would be up, he was always up. Since he got nuclear banned he was even coherent, well for the first couple of paragraphs. This was why you used multiple sources class. That chick with the case fifty three fetish lived in the bay too, SpecificProtagonist. She could confirm or deny Voids bullshit. She would be up in a few, and if you could get past the fucking chatter and weirdness, she usually had good info. OK, here we go, don't look them in the eye and back away slowly when they begin growling. Bagrat finished one email and hit send, then the other.

Now one more. Three sources. AllSeeingEye was good, though she did get snippy about the lack of donations to her Paymeone before she spilled. And the word count of her spill was tied to the dollar amount of the donation. Had to be a thinker cape. He had noticed that and tried to confirm it, he paid a little and got a little, before he actually made the transaction even. Precog maybe. Plus the juicier the spill the more each word cost.

Still need to be accurate. FallingIron didn't fuck around, and when he started TinMother joined in, then it became a gangban. He had seen it to many times already. The other sites were nearly useless as they were constantly under attack from somebody. They must have pissed off the Yangban, Red Gauntlet, Elitnaya, and the Elite. Those poor fuckers who ran those sites couldn't catch a break. Not that they deserved one. Fucking net freebooters and tweakers that they were. Supercilious millennial cunts who thought they knew something, always correcting each other, and anyone who posted fiction. Just a snippy little attack, and poof they were gone again, nothing useful. Not 'hey you spelled this wrong', or 'this is hard to understand, did you mean blah' or god forbid pointing out a plot hole or a continuity error. Never wrote their own though. Fucking critics, 'I don't like it' fucking whoopee, stop reading it then, and go the fuck away quietly. The most useless of all life forms.

Titanfall

Danny sat at the head of the table beaming as the girls destroyed breakfast and talked at nearly his limit of wpm. He was catching one word in three. Enough to barely get the flow and respond to questions. He couldn't stop smiling. Taylor was so happy!

BT's drones had done more than prep. Danny had just given a correction here and there. Breakfast was damn good. Handmade whip cream for the waffles even! Hell, he had forgotten about that ancient waffle iron. It was a wonder the thing was electric and not coal fired. It was as shiny as if had just come home from the store though. It also made perfect waffles much faster than he remembered.

Oops pay attention "Yes Taylor I already said you can go to the movie and Fugly Bobs. One question, how are you all getting there?"

"BT is driving."

"What?" Danny looked at BT.

"One of the warehouses I purchased is full of vehicles. Several of them were in running order. One, a nineteen sixty-six Volkswagen twenty-one window Combi, in blue and white both Taylor and Amy liked. I used it as a template to build a safe, comfortable, vehicle for the girls to use."

Danny pinched the bridge of his nose. "How many thousand horsepower."

"Oh no, wheel motors. The control is so much more precise that way. five hundred horsepower. Well twenty-four hundred-foot pounds of peak torque and twelve hundred-foot pounds indefinitely at each wheel. Horsepower is really just an ad writer's way of attracting people who don't know it is a fake number derived from torque, torque times RPM divided by five thousand two hundred and fifty-two.

"Before you ask it uses a gas turbine cogeneration plant to produce a megawatt. And condensation to recover the vaporized working fluid. It was a bit difficult getting the condenser to work but I was able to make it happen. I have it running on number two fuel oil.

"Of course, by the time I got it armored sufficiently it was quite heavy, so I don't think it will be very fast top speed wise. I had to use capacitors to satisfy the peak demands. I am working on a more efficient lighter generator though. Also, it can be plugged into the house or the grid and will make money back even when idling. Or power the house in an emergency. Provide heat for either heating or cooling, through steam jet cooling, as well. In that case it could burn bunker oil as fuel, much cheaper. If we sell a device to make it EPA compliant we can even collect the gasses and particulate emission. Lots of useful things in those."

Danny nodded "So what, about three thousand horsepower? Say six thousand horsepower peak? So not very fast is somewhere under the land speed record? And it is registered, inspected, licensed and insured."

"Torque is a much more informative number. It really depends on the rpm. Ah, thank you for pointing this out. I will work on that today."

Taylor couldn't contain herself and grabbed a Drone and hugged it. "Where is it, can we see it?"

"Christ. Fine let's look at it and then maybe we can drive it to school." Danny got tackle hugged.

"It is a fully functional drone. It does make the engine sounds of the original, and mostly conforms to the originals dimensional ratios. For infiltration purposes"

"Of course, it is, and does." Danny listened as the distinctive sound of a Volkswagen horizontally opposed, air cooled, four cylinder, became audible. For just a second before the squealing started. The girls charged outside and the micro bus got tackle hugged. The obviously wider, taller, longer, hot-rodded, dropped, microbus with its wide tires. Were those run flat tires?

"Solids. I used much better metals for the suspension and improved the shock absorbers. Lighter material in the tires so unsprung weight isn't the problem it normally would be. Wear should not be a problem either." His glasses informed him.

"And the laser emitter like you have on your chest in place of the VW logo?"

"I felt like it should be able to retaliate against whoever attacked Taylor. It will avoid first. Hence the high torque figures."

"So, the rear marker lights-"

"Are also laser emitters. Though that is a bit of a misnomer. More a maser/laser crossed with a particle beam. In your culture they are called Directed Energy Weapons as a category. Though usually not all combined."

Danny nodded "So Taylor could find a ramp and say, shoot down the moon?"

"At best she would be able to crack it. The capacitors would drain before she propelled the pieces out of their orbit. Also, she does not have tractive beam capability. I will look into it."

"Let's not and say we did."

"Come on Dad! We have to go!"

Danny walked to the driver's door "I can sit in the driver's seat BT?"

"Yes, buckle up please."

"Hey it is safer. A five point harness. I don't think these even had lap belts when they first came out. If they did nobody used them." Danny had to use BT to call in to tell them he would be a few minutes late as he was dropping Taylor at school. He could hear the smile in Martha, the secretaries, voice over the connection when she told him to take his time.

Danny finally got away after seemingly hundreds of kids looked at the van with its built in wifi, flat screens, refrigerators, leather interior, heated, vibrating, swiveling, seats, and other things he still wasn't sure he had seen.

By the time the last dockworker finished lacing up his boots after he got out of it, once he was parked at the DWU, was ten am before Danny got in the office.

Titanfall

The Chief of the vehicle inspection office, Mark Crane, looked at Armsmaster "I don't know. It drove up, well this robot with the picture of Clark Gable on its head drove it up, and it passed inspection. All safety items, brakes, and a visual inspection. The red seal inspection, along with the pressure vessel inspection too.

"The red seal guys made it take a written test, then the operators and engineers made it take another one. They x-rayed the heat exchanger and pressure vessel, including the condenser.

"Jim, over in drivers testing, made it take a written and a road test. It got a license. It weighs four hundred thirty-eight pounds and can walk around on all fours, run really, at fifty miles an hour Chuck's radar gun said.

"Anyway, it has all the paperwork. The Combi had to be licensed commercial as it weighs seven tons. GVWR is seventeen tons. The DOT guys brought in the weights and we tested it loaded. It handles pretty good even at ten percent over. The manufacturer's plate says BT Machine. I checked the EPA and they have the paperwork. It's got a gas turbine and meets emission specs. On bunker C, no way it doesn't meet them on everything else that will burn. As far as the City, County, State, and Federal Government, are concerned it is a licensed, registered, motor vehicle. Not tinker tech. Energy star certified even."

"Danny Hebert down at the Dock Workers said he got it as a thank you from this Operator for helping her finding facilities and a work force. I guess it comes with the driver? Nice parahuman there. Not always just demanding. Knows how to show appreciation."

Armsmaster nodded tightly and got on his motorcycle to follow the obviously tinker tech van making those ridiculous sounds of an engine from a bygone era away "Thank you."

Jim shrugged and waved, after snapping a picture. The video of the van had already been streamed. Some of robot Gable doing his driver's test, and scoring perfect on both parts, too.

Titanfall

Lacey stormed into Danny's office "Finding her facilities and a work force? I didn't see a job notice!"

Danny threw his pen down "I'm doing it now. BT just gave me his requirements. Actually, all of them. I am reviewing the contract he wrote. How many people out of work do you have on your list? He wants three hundred qualified workers. Engineers to janitors.

"Wait a minute, how did you know?"

Lacey grinned "Mark Crane gossips like an old woman, him and his guys posted fifty videos. They put that thing through a Chinese inspection trying to fail it. Including one video of Mark talking to Armsmaster and saying Operator had given you the Combi as a thank you."

Danny scrabbled around on his computer for a minute then chuckled "OK BT, these are legit inquires then. Mark put the specs of the Combi on PHO. Ford, Chrysler, and GM want to buy the plans and intellectual property.

"Volkswagen is a bit upset, but they are in Germany. And the design you ripped off is forty-five years old. They can't win a patent infringement suit.

"You have at least five hundred orders for Combis, at any price. One from Elon Musk. Don't take that offer. He will just take it apart and rip you off. Or shoot it into space for the Simurgh to have as an advertising stunt. Guy's retarded or something.

"I mean a hundred miles to the gallon, or run your house and small business? And provide hot water for heat, and AC? All wheel drive, technically. You are going to be deluged with orders from preppers.

"Oh, and Con Ed has a bone to pick with you apparently.

"I'll call Frank."

"I am already corresponding with Mr. Columbo Danny. Also, I am setting a price on the Combi. The initial production will be low as I only have a five industrial robot and six drone workforce for it. With the wrecks though, I have plenty of base metal to work with. At least for now. I will offer a substantial friends family and Union discount.

"I am interested in these abandoned scrap yards. Both for the metal, and the chemicals that have leached into the soil."

Lacey snapped her fingers "I know an environmental engineer. Got a daughter lives here with her ex. Bit of a hippy, but all she can talk about is cleaning those and the old oil fields up. All the Brownfields between here and California really. She knows where they all are, and has been to most of them. When she isn't screaming about fracking and throwing shit anyway. I'll call her. She is here in town. If she isn't having a séance for all the killed nature in the rust belt somewhere. Or over at Centralia crying and laying wreaths."

Titanfall

Dennis led the group up and sat across from Taylor at the normal genius table. Vicky's normal lunch crew sat as well. Amy narrowed her eyes. Lucy crossed her arms over her chest and Amanda pushed her tray back and folded her hands. Taylor smiled at them then arched a brow at Dennis. "Very smooth, given to your dad for helping Operator."

"What?"

Lucy handed Taylor a tablet already displaying the appropriate PHO page, explosion, and meltdown, whichever you wanted to call it. Taylor skimmed it quickly. "Ha, that actually worked. Well from the jealous glares and extraneous hugs I have gotten. I almost took Song Kim's head off. Hugging my thighs like that."

Amy rolled her eyes "It was your waist and she is like four feet tall. She didn't 'stick her face in your hoohoo.' Hoohoo, you aren't six Taylor." She got a huge pout back. The girls sighed and fluttered their eyelashes. Then giggled

Dennis spluttered "So being a genius runs in the family and you people can come up with anything to cover anything! Bullshit!"

Taylor grinned like a shark "Thinker."

"Mover, blaster, striker, tinker, master." Bullshit! Dennis hissed back as he rubbed his leg where Carlos had kicked him for being loud.

"We haven't met. I'm Operator, would you like to meet BT 7274?"

Dennis missed the hint and the others leaning back He didn't miss Chris grabbing his ear and steering his head around. "Oh shit."

"Bath time!" Dennis's doppler affected scream marked Glory Girls passage through the school with him tucked under her arm.

Amy drummed her fingers. Carlos stuck his hand out to Taylor "Carlos, Aegis." The other Wards introduced themselves. To maintain the fiction if nothing else. Taylor smiled and shook their hands.

Amy asked "What is Dennis's boggle today?"

Dean shrugged "He's an idiot? You know your friends are going to have to sign NDA's."

Amanda shrugged "Had to happen eventually. We have known who you were since the second day of freshman year. Ours anyway. You guys collectively suck at secret identities, secret anything really. You need more girls on your team to teach you. Girls your age. Not girls like Vista, the real leader of the Brockton Bay Wards, minus age and sexism."

Lucy nodded "The one who should be, anyway. She has two years on the most senior of you. She has been in more fights too. And she has an A class power if they would let her use it."

The Wards blinked. Carlos replied "What?"

Taylor chuckled "Here we go."

Titanfall

"Missy Byron." Vista said as she glomped Taylor. "The boys are getting their asses chewed. Glory Girl dropped Clockblocker over the middle of the bay, told him it was a warning. Miss Militia got him down with a helicopter. Scared the crap out of him with the blades right over his head as she side slipped up to him and then around him. Can we shoot some more?"

Taylor reached into her pack and produced a jump pack. She waggled it back and forth "Maybe you want to try something else first? Amy is breaking hers in too."

Vista whooped and looked around at the other girls smiling, who were already wearing jump packs. Amy laughed "Vicky is getting her ass chewed by mom. Crystal will be here later though."

A half hour later Miss Militia pulled up on the beach and grinned at Vista. Who was whooping every time she jumped and compressed space, she had bounced of the shield on the rig three times so far. The troopers were still laughing about the first Doppler affected "I'm OK!" as she jumped off it back to the beach.

The girls all suddenly landed on the sand and Vista grinned from ear to ear "Yay! Range time!"

Taylor smiled "OK, but only an hour Missy. We have to go get ready. We are going to the movie later remember?"

Miss Militia arched a perfect black brow "All of you?"

"The boys too and the New Wave kids. If the boys are through getting chewed out." Missy supplied.

"Oh, they are. Now they are having a GI party in the Wards Hub. One of Gully's drill instructors is helping them." She grinned as the girls all winced.

The Combi pulled up and its door opened to a rack holding weapons as the driver got out and came around to check and issue weapons. Miss Militia grinned "Ah, Clockblockers Bane."

"Oh, I like that! We will have to figure out where to paint its name on, and in what font." Taylor was grinning from ear to ear now. You could hear it in her voice. "Oh sorry. Miss Militia, Taylor Hebert, Operator."

Hannah smiled crinkling her eyes "Hannah Washington, Miss Militia." She shook Taylors hand and picked up a semi auto fifty caliber rifle that was as tall as she was.

Titanfall

Emily looked at the screens and chuckled. The others on the screens joined her. She finally got the meeting going. "So, another day behind the looking glass. Vista, well the geniuses are right. Not only does she have the most experience, she has the most ability. I am stuck trying to figure out how to end run the damn Youth Guard."

Hannah shrugged "Tell her that. Tell the other Wards too. Make her the deputy Wards leader. Increase her stipend."

Emily nodded "All good ideas. I'll get Director Renick to look into it. Now Robot Gable?"

Armsmaster sighed "A drone, when not controlled by BT a body guard and or equipment carrier. Armed with directed energy weapons that they use as industrial cutting and welding tools when operating as workers or technicians."

"S class rating then. For Operator and BT or BT?" Emily asked.

Armsmaster sighed "I think that's a bit hasty, also as she is an affiliated hero, do we really want to do that?"

Emily sighed "Forgot about that. Damnit!"

Armsmaster was gracious in victory "It is a very busy time." Emily, Gully, and Hannah, looked at him.

Titanfall

Taylor turned from the back door, came in the kitchen and got handed her glass of water. "How was it?"

Taylor opened her mouth and then rubbed her face "My jaws hurt."

Danny beamed "So the movie was good?"

"Oh no, it was crap. Some 'chick flick'. 'How do you Know'. Aleph, Chisel chin girl. I wanted to watch the Narnia one, Amy didn't care, Lucy, Amanda, Vicky, and maybe Missy wanted the other one. Amy is freaking hilarious though. We made them so mad giggling all the way through the boring thing. Drama, I mean we are in high school, don't we get enough drama? I want boom, pow, ratatattat! Or magic lions." She grinned.

Danny hugged her. "Glad you had fun Owl."

"Dad!" Taylor squirmed.

Danny hugged tighter then kissed her on the forehead "Night Taylor, crack o dawn comes early."

Taylor left him with a parting hug.

Danny stretched and then went to bed. Eleven o'clock on the dot. Taylor was a good girl. "Night BT."

"Goodnight Danny."

Titanfall

Ted Sarkrite looked over the group he was with. They were all in as shitty a shape as he was. Delirium tremens, he should never have read that Wikipedia article. Who knew a forty or two a day meant you were an alchy? He was twenty-four! He couldn't be an alcoholic, he had a job and everything! He wasn't some bum living on the street with a bottle of mad dog and a shopping cart! Mild symptoms though, so he would be OK? He probably should have got in his works health insurance, or the government health care, but that was just the man trying to force them to do something. The fascist! Damn Republicans!

What the fuck were they doing out here, oh yeah. Craig wanted one of those crazy Centaur drones. Hell, he wanted one too. This probably wasn't the way to do it though. How was this fucking macramé net going to catch one of those things? Hundred pound test monofilament or not.

Chas was right! Here came one of the freaking things at four forty-five in the morning. Just like she said it would. He checked his position, never noticing his foot in the loop of heavy monofilament braid, probably twenty strands, leading to the Toyota axle driven into the right of way, holding the net to the street.

Just as the drone got to the net several things happened. A small golden ball zipped in, the drone fired a laser from its eyes and exploded the thing, then it accelerated hard. It hit the net still looking up at the smudge of fire in the sky and never noticed the net.

The net came tight, past tight and pulled the stake. The loop caught around Teds ankle and whipped him across the road, down the embankment, through the trees to the sound of meaty smacks and breaking limbs and then the line that was cutting into his ankle did what the women were afraid of, drew tight, stretched all the way out, and snapped. Leaving Ted bleeding out, foot amputated, legs and arms broken, and his face and throat smashed.

Jimmy looked around "Chas said this might happen. Come on, let's get out of here. Everybody OK? I don't know what Craig wanted that fucking thing for anyway. She makes them all the time, she isn't going to come looking for one."

Jersey shrugged, which did interesting things to her chest under that hoody "Get its weapons maybe. Did you see that thing smoke that snitch?" I wonder what it was doing out here?"

"Ted said Chas thinks it makes grocery runs over to the twenty-four-hour Shoprite. Fucking things can carry a bus, there is video of one of them doing that at that steel mill, why doesn't it do groceries like once a week?"

Ted tried to wave his broken arm or make a noise but it was so painful! He watched plaintively as the cars drove off. Someone would save him. He was just going to rest here in the bottom of this dry ditch. Great, now it was snowing. What if they didn't come? He better message a few of them and private message his mom, somebody, anybody really. It was text, but it would work with a little patience. He could even explain the position he was in and how he got there. Crap, no signal!

Titanfall

Uber winced at the screaming from Leet "Maybe we should leave her alone dude."

"No, fuck that! She stole my mechanical mule design!"

"Uh, Leet, you got that idea from that DARPA video and Call of Duty MAC IC SOG."

"But I made it work!"

"Only if it followed me and it didn't even make it through the first level before it was on fire and ramming itself in the walls. We had to shoot it and play it off like the enemy had taken it over."

"It was sweet though, and it is mine! They belong to me! She isn't even a tinker! That thing didn't even have any tinker tech!"

"Not to point out the obvious, but doesn't that mean she didn't steal it from you?"

"Whose side are you on Uber?"

"Yours dude. Dude are you crying? Don't cry dude. Maybe we could just talk to her."

"She doesn't do PHO, the rest of the sites are a cluster fuck, between professional DDOS attacks and the idiots pissing off her fan girls, the parahuman boards where the truth lives are garbage. And down most of the time."

"Dude a lot of the 'truth' on those boards is us trolling the fuck out of them. Maybe we should take a vacation. Go somewhere warm."

"Not until I finish my Monarch titan and kick her ass."

"I really don't think it's a good idea dude."

"You swore revenge with me!"

Uber pinched the bridge of his nose. Leet was going to get them killed going up against a real Titan.


	11. Chapter 11

Titanfall 11

Danny's eyes opened and he looked at BT. He heard the remnants, ghostly echoes, of Taylors passage. Then the high speed burst transmission started in the back yard, and suddenly all was right with his world. "Hello BT"

"Good morning Danny, I read you."

Danny smiled, apparently, they were going to continue this 2001 thing "Anything interesting over night?"

"I was forced to sand the floor in the studio again. the top coat developed several wrinkles. I will reapply it again today when you and Taylor are out. I prepared the basement for the procedure to push it out to the lot lines. I intend to use a modified longwall mining process leaving a supporting, corrosion resistant, plate supported by columns. Chromium was amazingly easy to find and with the good quality scrap I have manufactured a plentiful supply of face hardened Stainless steel. It will be layered into a space laminated array. The basement bathroom is prepared to be undercut and dropped, as a unit, into the deeper basement the thickness of the armor will necessitate. Once the walls are up at the property line the other columns will be removed leaving a clear space.

"My research indicates a meter of topsoil will be sufficient for grass and decorative plants with the proper irrigation. The roof armor will include connections for that irrigation.

"Someone tried to intercept one of the drones on a grocery run, I have notified the police and sent them video recordings of the event."

Danny watched the animation of the operations on the basement and the attempt at stopping the drone. "A little dark for video wasn't it?"

"Thermal imaging. They are investigating. As the location is off the main roads, and at elevation, it received a light coat of snow. They do not have much hope of developing significant evidence besides the video due to the snow."

"Always the way. Anything down in Lordsport?" Danny arched a brow.

"The Archers Bridge Merchants are still disabled, or in police custody. My surveillance of them indicates they have at least a weeks work before they will be ready to attack Panacea."

Danny nodded "Lots to get trained on between now and then. You are ready to give classes to the workers and our security people, and you can do that while watching Taylor?"

"Easily Danny.

"Danny, I have found a group that was interfering with, and stealing from, Dragon. They, not knowing I was watching, have given me the tools to stop what they are doing to her systems and to eliminate them."

Danny huffed "Damn. We talked about this though, just yesterday. You are going to have to brief Taylor. Right now she has to make the decision as she is the one who will be held responsible. Unless it is defense of self or others."

The drone sighed. Danny arched a brow. BT continued "I was hoping you would say something else. The planets I was inserted into were either enemy held or occupied. The law was not a hindrance. I haven't been able to find a way around it here though."

Danny nodded "I should be proud I guess. Somehow I am not. These people going after Dragon for her technology, they will come after you, and so Taylor too."

"Not to change the subject but, Amy's implant? Today after PT. It should go well, pending any surprises. Her augments will be started at the same time and should help tremendously. She will be unconscious most of the day. Vicky will be with her. Her adoptive mother and father have approved. Although Carol did speak to medical ethicist about the test case. Amy will be donating its organs as matches are found. It does not have a brain so is not technically even human. We are still going to let people think Amy experimented on herself if anyone discovers she is augmented and has the neural interface. I advised against it as she is underage. I was overruled. Amy should fully recover for school on Monday."

Danny nodded in the shower "The insurance companies are already doing human research Frank told me. Next week the first hearings happen. This could get tossed then but he thinks it will go all the way through to get an affirmative ruling. Of course he thinks that will be appealed. Lawyers, what are you going to do."

BT rolled up and down "In Amy's case she is going to hire a patent attorney, as her augments can all be patented."

Danny blew a raspberry "More lawyers, delivery me from lawyers!"

BT's ocular sensor glowed brighter "I have purchased the ferries and their terminals."

Danny leaned against the wall, a bit dizzy "And?"

"I was thinking you and some of the people you work with could take a look.

"The two that sunk are being moved, under water, to drydock number one with a number of other sunken vessels. Simultaneously the dry dock is being cleaned out and its gates and pumps put in working order. Once they get the dock full the drones will close it off and we will pump it out. Those operations should be complete by nine.

"If you could have some of the tradesmen go over one of the terminals with several of my drones I should be able to start work on them.

"Depending on the condition of the two ferries still afloat, I might be able to start a limited service next week."

"Have I told you are a handy fellow?"

"Not today."

"Come on, let's be handy with breakfast. It's going to be a busy day, you know Taylor isn't going to move until Amy is OK. I will get some guys up to go over the ferries and some more to go over to the docks. We can talk to Taylor about what to do with the Dragonslayers while we are waiting for Amy."

Titanfall

Sophia watched the multiple dim blue lights moving trough town. She growled and rubbed the spot on her forehead gently. "Little Nazi bitch. Mean left though. fucking pugil sticks. Nobody got hurt with them in the movies!"

Titanfall

Carol got up and went through her morning routine. She made it down to the foyer of her upper middle class home just in time for the front door to open and her sister, brother in law, and nephew to come in. "Good Morning. Mark is out running. Breakfast?"

Sarah Pelham nodded "I'll help. Mark gets up this early now?"

Carol rolled her eyes "Amy checks him every morning, it wakes him. He was a light sleeper before and has gone back to it now. If he isn't running, he is studying. His disability is going to get pulled so he is brushing up on his engineering skills. I think he is planning on working for Taylor and BT."

Sarah arched a brow "And why would his disability payments get stopped?"

Carol led the way into the kitchen "Because we have to tell the insurance company, if we don't they are going to drop us and Cape insurance is tough to get. Plus we got in it twenty years ago so our rates are great. You should see the rates they ask for now!"

Sarah nodded "The pool isn't that big, with only Heroes buying insurance. Yes I guess we have to tell them. They might not pull it though, after all it is a experimental treatment and he could revert."

Carol narrowed her eyes "You know, I think I can word it in a way to make that happen. I'll have to review that policy again. We should be able to get some consideration for our hundred thousand dollars a year."

Sarah nodded "At least you were able to bundle all the insurance into one policy, Home, auto, professional liability, and Cape liability. I sound like a Farmers ad.

"Can you believe the girls are getting up this early everyday?"

Carol chuckled "Poor Danny, having to feed that herd."

Sarah grinned at her as she stirred the eggs for omelets "Well the Shoprite ladies are certainly entertained with robot Clark."

Neil Pelham looked up from his cutting board "Clark was feeling whimsical today, there is a video of him dancing with one of the cashiers while the store elevator music was playing swing music. He was pretty good."

Eric Pelham, helping his dad asked "So Amy still getting cyborged today?"

Mark walked in and went to the cabinets to get dishes "It isn't really going to turn her into a cyborg, the augmentation is totally separate. The neural interface just makes it where she can connect to BT. He can feed her data across it. Like an improved drone."

All of their eyes went to the glasses they were wearing. In Eric's case a pair of Oakley's with varying amounts of shade on the lenses depending on how bright the ambient light was. Carol sighed "I'm a bad mom. I'm more worried about the augments than I am the implant. Its the damn singing mushrooms that did it."

Sarah grinned at her, and hipped her at the stove "Those were so cute!"

Mark shrugged "The test on all of it worked great. I think she should add some storage to the test case and BT could use it if he ever needs a human body."

Neil froze, knife mid stroke "You know, if BT could add one of his sensor suites to it, that would be a great idea. They could change its features somewhat, and it could be around the girls all the time."

Eric snorted "They could do that with makeup, it could be Amy's older cousin. It's already more Amy than Amy ever was." He held a hand over his head then cupped his hands in front of himself. "Brute three, mover four, thinker four for enhanced senses. BT would make it a thinker ten, he could arm it and it would have a striker and blaster rating."

Carol nodded and rolled up the southwestern omelet she had going "Yes, just harvesting those organs is a waste. Amy already does the non-matches and critical cases on the transplant list. In seconds even. Damn Medicare is so cheap too. She doesn't have the school bills but she does have the liability insurance to pay, another hundred thousand dollars a year.

"Transplant surgeons in private practice get hundreds of thousands of dollars for a transplant. Amy gets from seventy four to a hundred and twelve thousand for regrowing the patient an organ. Which doesn't then require anti rejection drugs. If she wasn't recording and up selling the general tune-ups she does at the same time it would be break even by the time she paid for the room, nursing, lab support, and administrative staff.

"The foreign customers who don't have Medicare are where the money is there. Plus she makes hardly anything on Endbringer events because there is no time to diagnose and record. That two or three-million-dollar honorarium for each attack the PRT pays is nice but not near what she is owed when she is healing flat out, a hundred patients a minute. Trauma cases like that generally bill at a million dollars each."

Mark shrugged walking in "The governments involved usually kick in the same amount. If there is anything left of them, eventually. Amy isn't suffering for money, neither are we. Even just cut back to us doing the Endbringer events. We need to look at changing that. BT may put a end to that."

Sarah nodded "If he has broken the cycle, or breaks it, we will need to start working on A and S class threats. Amy could counter Nilbog's plagues. We are going to have to up our training."

Neil poured coffee "I'm wondering if hooking a tinker twelve to a thinker twelve and an AI might not let them do the Gray Boy areas. We could do cape support. There are billions in rewards for those."

The others froze, Eric finally whistled "So the Neural implant is going to hook them all together into a gestalt mind? A master twelve, tinker twelve bio tinker, thinker twelve and whatever the hell BT really is?"

Mark sat down at the table as the others drifted over with their plates "I, well, damn, its possible."

Sarah sighed "Emily Piggot is going to lose her mind."

Carol shrugged "Amy already tuned her up, surely it has occurred to her."

Eric shrugged "It hasn't occurred to Taylor or BT."

"Amy! Damnit! You have to watch that girl all the damn time." Carol stabbed her very nice omelet viciously.

Sarah frowned, chewed swallowed and asked "So, do we stop it?"

Mark shook his head "It's possible. Not certain. Plus, Amy and Taylor are heroes. I think we take the chance and get the advantage."

Neil nodded then said "Amy is gay."

Carol snorted "With modern media? All girls are massively confused. The teenage female form is the American ideal, well, if you stick thirty-year-old boobs on it."

Neil nodded in concession then added "My point was, what if Taylor isn't and gets a boyfriend?" Everyone around the table winced.

Sarah added "Or what if this tie forms and forces them into a relationship?"

Mark nodded firmly "Let's eat and get this show on the road, I think we need to have some discussions before this goes ahead."

Titanfall

"So BT, ready?" Taylor asked.

"Yes Taylor." Taylor looked around at all the girls and her dad "OK you guys brace yourselves. We are going to data dump a whole lot of scenarios BT and I thought up and our probable responses to them. Just relax and don't blink. In fact blink a few times now and give me a thumbs up when you are ready."

The others looked around, blinked and then gave a thumbs up one by one. BT dumped the data on them as they raised their thumbs. Lucy and Amanda were finished first. Amanda nodded "Wow. Theory of education already paid off for you. Give me a second BT then give me that again. Just to make sure."

"Plus, I think a repeat will prompt our minds to work through it faster. Taylor you are so learning topographical math and then dumping it on me every morning until I get it. That class is killing me." Lucy added blinking then she raised her thumb at the same time as Amanda and BT dumped them again.

Taylor looked at Danny "You OK dad?"

Danny nodded "Fine. I never even thought about it linking you two."

Vicky nodded "BT being able to buffer you and separate you is cool though."

"Because frankly, what if you never get together, or break up? Psycho ex-girlfriend twelve plus time right there. You wouldn't be keying each others cars you would be lighting them on fire, with the other driving it." Crystal added.

Taylor pouted at Amy "You wouldn't hurt Clockblockers Bane would you."

"No, we haven't even done anything like some of these yet. Wow, pretty involved. I really like course of action one." Amy grinned and waggled her eyebrows. "I can do that too. I just need the genetic material. Both pregnant at the same time is out though. The hormones are like crazy, and I don't want to adjust them out. Well, maybe the morning sickness can be moderated. Although, thalidomide." The girls awed. Danny face palmed. Taylor blushed.


	12. Chapter 12

Titanfall 12

The girls all looked at each other in the Combi. Danny laughed "Well some more information dumps are obviously going to have to happen." They were looking out at the rest of New Wave, Dr. Yamada, the PRT and Protectorate ENE leadership, Legend, Alexandria, and a Dragon drone standing in front of the gate of BT's manufacturing complex with Frank Columbo.

Taylor nodded "At least we know it works."

Amy hummed "Umm hmm." Taylor blushed furiously, again glad of full face mask. She might have gotten a bit into the different courses of action that had her and Amy together. Puberty sucked so bad. Ack! No, no sucking, nothing! So glad for full face mask!

BT cleared his throat and said "I will moderate some of those courses of action for public consumption."

"Thank God!" Taylor unconsciously blurted. Amy pouted while the other girls giggled.

Danny looked at the speaker closest to him "You couldn't do that for me? Some things a father shouldn't know!"

They couldn't see it but the mirrored from the outside windows turned slightly pink. Alexandria laughed "That van is blushing."

Twenty minutes later Legend, Manpower, Flashbang and Shielder were looking at the blushing Danny and chuckling. Alexandria shook her head "BT you should investigate drama films, or church lady porn, if that is the public consumption version. How was the other version rated?"

Danny grumbled "NC 17."

Emily laughed "Hold on second BT, and then give it to me again. I think I got it all but I want to run a check. Other than the relationship information that was pretty dense." The others sitting around the conference table nodded and they all got it again.

When they had recovered Neil cleared his throat, "While our brains digest all of this for a minute, we thought you could use the test subject as a 'human' platform BT."

Amy frowned "It's possible, we will have to compare me to the test case after my augments take. Genetic variation creeps in, or will. We might get away with her being a slightly older relative who comes to live with us."

Legend nodded "It could work, Glen's mind already snapped so that won't matter much."

Dr Yamada frowned "His mind didn't 'snap'. He is simply undergoing a period of adjustment. He should be fine. The catatonic state has already passed. He will probably enter a manic phase and begin requesting transfer to Brocton Bay to be near to, and learn from, BT."

Alexandria snorted "We should just move the PRT Headquarters here. Rebecca wouldn't have to be on a slow video link then. Though good work not blinking for the whole two minutes Rebecca."

"That was actually my drone, a true VTC download would take four hours and forty seven minutes and probably induce a crippling headache because of the limited refresh rate of the current generation of video screens. Audio lag would also be an issue. Transmission in atmosphere is so much slower than bone conduction to the auditory nerves." BT said.

Rebecca nodded "So that's why the 'speakers' are those contacts in the legs. Our thinkers and tinkers having blessed the drones, we will be buying them for everyone. Three hundred dollars apiece is cheaper than we pay for communications and field data processing that is not this good. Getting people trained on the replacement console will be the hard part. Unless, could you package and dump it like this BT?"

"I will design the program of instruction and cost it out Chief Director. A rough order of magnitude would be an additional one hundred dollars, it would include all the PRT and Protectorate regulations and the law concerned. Speaking of which some of that will require de-conflicting. I am sending you a list of the conflicting laws and regulations."

Alexandria and Legend raised a finger and then nodded when BT dumped the information to them. Alexandria nodded "Some of this was known. I like the path to de-confliction and suggested resolutions though. We will have to see how much we can pay for just this to start."

Legend nodded "Concur, Chief Director?"

Rebecca finished the download and nodded "Yes, this is nice work." She sighed "Unfortunately it gives me more work. This will take time. Can we still get the drones and training program and then update the training, quarterly perhaps?"

"Easily Chief Director. The cost data is on its way to you along with a statement of work."

"I'll get with contracting and have them get back to you BT.

"So does anyone see any problems with the installation of the neural connection in Panacea?"

Gully asked "Not the augmentation?"

Miss Militia shrugged "Can we even say anything about her doing it to herself, other people I can see, but herself? I mean body modification is legal, piercings and tattoos being an example."

Frank Columbo looked at Carol and nodded "I think she needs parental permission for the body modification and neural implant, other than that, until she does something illegal, I don't think the courts have a say. I can easily make all of this fly past a court."

Carol nodded "It can't be considered self-harm even, as its purpose is self-improvement. She could accomplish the same thing with a bit of luck and a lot of sweat."

Armsmaster nodded "And the three test cases have been modified less than triggering with Parahuman powers, even though one of them has triggered. Case fifty threes have more extreme modifications generally."

"Though the combination in the parahumans case did raise the levels in all categories at least two numbers."

Emily frowned "Assuming you are including me as one of the test cases, it is two different things?"

Dragon shook her head and Armsmaster closed his mouth "Yes, and Mr. Dallon, a different delivery system and mechanism of change, slower in the case of test subject three. Though that might have been to accommodate the audience. Test subject one was the fastest and most complete but that was done in front of all medical professionals. As far as I can tell though the changes are affected in the same manner. Panacea's striker power just doesn't need the vectors and effects the changes immediately."

"And if one of these vectors escapes containment?" Emily arched a brow.

Miss Militia answered "It is tailored to the individual at the genetic level? From the data dump anyway."

Amy nodded "DNA locked. I had hoped to develop a version to be released, but at best those improve the test subjects to the level their current body and their habits could have achieved. Or as much of that as they have the body mass for. I have filed for the patent on it.

"Hopefully it would help after an Endbringer attack, In America it nearly certainly would. We are pretty much too fat as a people. All of them, the virus already released included, have a healing effect, but not like I can achieve with the proper resources and in contact with the person. They won't replace missing limbs or stop people from dying of massive trauma.

"Alcohol is one of, if not the worst. drug to withdraw from, and that withdrawal is, in some cases, fatal. I had to ameliorate that. Plus it helps heal the liver and other organs so I don't have to heal the idiots later.

"If I lock it to DNA it functions like a retrovirus. It changes all the DNA, gets rid of the errors, and then builds to the maximum possible."

The Chief Director nodded "And that was in the dump, as soon as you started talking about it my brain brought up the data? How does that work? BT, did you paginate my brain?"

"Similar to giving it a data directory. At least in the parts that are now yours from the download, which is why the recommended reading list is so wide. If you can cover that material as rapidly as possible it will move more of the download to long term memory. True learning rather than gain, test, and dump. You will retain a higher percentage with this method. Taylor's permutations of possibilities may fade in time as I was unsure of how to back that up." BT, the real BT, replied from where he was squatting at the end of the conference table.

"All the Danielle Steel novels." Crystal fanned herself. Taylor blushed furiously, without her mask on now as they were inside. The girls giggled, waggled their eyebrows, and fanned themselves.

Danny covered his face with both hands. "Does brain bleach exist? Amy can you make me forget?"

Amy huffed "What is it with you Hebert's trying to use me as brain bleach? Taylor does the same thing."

BT intoned "It is well within your capabilities Advocate."

Amy rolled her eyes "OK, well, while you all talk about me, come on girls, let's get me plugged in. Unless anyone has a reasonable objection? Carol? Mark? No? Yay! Hook me to all the knowing BT!"

The others watched the girls' troop out. Dragon asked BT "You aren't going?"

"I am already there Dragon."

"You have enough processing and data through put for that?"

"I have been building what you would call five gigahertz octuplet core processors at the rate of one per minute since shortly after acquiring this facility. Crystal memory structures as well. I have a 'server farm' deeply buried in the bedrock under us, cooled by sea water from the bottom of the continental shelf. I did have to station a drone at the discharge to keep it clear, the denizens of the deep ocean like the warmth.

"Power was a problem until I found a ship in inventory with a gas turbine plant. Navy, sold for scrap in the nineties. It was however never scrapped, not fully. I rebuilt the plant, after moving it, and added cogeneration. It was an amazingly successful practical application of some reading I have done. I had the fuel oil in the tank farm, and, as you know, a gas turbine is capable of ingesting a wide variety of feed stocks. Up to and including waste oil.

"I am also 'cloud based' and using idle processor cycles of most of the computers in North America. Though that is slower. I have enough processing and memory to accomplish all task.

"I have been paying the computer owners for the electricity and a small fee for wear and tear on their equipment."

Armsmaster perked up then nodded as his HUD was sent the schematic of the processor and cloud based architecture. The others waited a moment. He asked "How much would one of these processors cost?"

"Five hundred and seventy dollars, with a surcharge for the market rate of the metals used." BT replied.

Emily frowned "Where are you getting the metals?"

"I am mining the waste stream, liquid and solid, also I have discovered what the EPA has classified as superfund sites and am mining them. There was a tannery I have purchased. They used chromium. Tons of it, and then dumped it in an area that has become known as the blue well. The chromium, and acids, in the discharge, have prevented any biological growth in the 'well', and the chromium, along with other useful metals and minerals, have precipitated out.

'There are also dumping sites in the ocean all along the east coast. I have only begun mining them. The shallow ones. The ones at the edge of the continental shelf promise to be very productive. Along with literally hundreds of wrecks.

"Waste Management has subcontracted BT Technologies to remove the hazardous waste from, and mine, the solid waste stream of Brockton Bay and the surrounding area. I receive the material as payment of the contract, and a cash payment if the waste stream does not yield enough of the products I need at the current market rate to cover the mining fee.

"The plastics go to the refinery with the gas recovered from the landfill and are refined again with the waste oils recovered. The amount of oil in the oceans is quite simply amazing. I may not need to proceed with the cleanup of the oil fields of the Appalachian basin. The chemical plant connected to the refinery produces what I need. I sell on the excess.

"Waste Management is left with organic waste which they compost in the strip behind the 'face' I am mining of the landfill, and sell any excess to consumers or farms. A very satisfactory arrangement. Though it does take a specialized drone. Essentially a long wall miner that piles the over burden behind itself mixed with the organic material. A lot of the gas recovered is burned by the drone to produce energy, along with some of the organic solids, the gas is burned in a gas turbine and its exhaust used in a fluid bed furnace which heats a boiler and drives a steam turbine in a cogeneration arrangement. Waste Management is in negotiations to expand the operation to all the active and former dumps and landfills they are mining. Blue Diamond has contacted me as well.

"The DWU is supplying me with crews, and engineering support, in all my business units, until I can replace the unskilled with drones, and they can be trained up for other positions."

Dragon frowned "While we were waiting, I took some measurements, updated my survey of the area, you are not generating nearly enough heat or pollutants for all of that?"

"Heat is a cost, I recover as much as possible to save that cost. Those 'pollutants' are useful. From water vapor through CFCs. Additionally, I am actually separating out as much of those and other things as I can from the atmosphere in what could be called a gas refinery. Not enough is trapped in the waste stream. To make my operations profitable for the companies contracted to me I use that gas refinery to reduce my consumption.

"Carbon especially. Approximately forty million tons of carbon are put into the atmosphere a year. It's essentially free. I pump some of the carbon dioxide back into the waste water of the server farm cooling which, along with the warm water, increases the amount of plankton. That in turn will increase the amount of protein available for Taylor and her offspring. At the same time it will improve the atmosphere, as will sequestering all of these gasses and pollutants in solid form by using them in products.

"Improving the environment also makes Taylor happy. Polluting it does not.

Emily glared at Danny and BT "You two bastards are taking over the world by cleaning it up. Don't think I don't know what you are doing to the ferry and at the Boat Graveyard."

Frank chuckled "Better not tell her about the oil leases off the coast and slant drilling then BT."

Jessica Yamada had locked on something else "Its, everything you do, is about Operator, Taylor."

"It always has been, at least since I booted up this cycle. It will be until I am destroyed. Become one. I serve the Operator."

Alexandria narrowed her eyes "Taking how much of the planet with you?"

"As little as I can to keep Operator safe and happy hopefully. All of it if that is what it takes. There are other planets I can manufacture the means to reach. Even if Operator cannot call a carrier as has been suggested."

Eric groaned "Here we go. Skynet time."

Jessica Yamada asked "And are you already manufacturing these means?"

"A purpose of BT Tech industries is to build to that goal as a safety. Its main purpose is to improve conditions on this world to the point where that will always be the last backup. The minimum number of individuals for a successful population is around twenty five thousand. I have selected double that to increase the odds. Those individuals will be notified if the situation on this planet becomes untenable. The list is constantly updated. Transportation will be provided.

"In order to accomplish those goals I require a society that functions within the rule of reasonable laws.

"I have the capability to take care of threats that will not, or cannot, function within that society. The United States currently functions within the required parameters and can be adjusted to function even better. It has the system in place to do that. It does allow direct action against the outliers. Canada is a viable alternative. South Korea as a last, worst case position."

Legend smirked "Told you, side of the angels."

Alexandria snorted "As in the Archangel Gabriel, the left hand of god, which destroys things. And uses psychological, financial, and information warfare, along with direct action, to achieve his goals. Or what he perceives as her goals."

BT shrugged "Or reveals them. And 'A rising tide lifts all boats' is applicable in this case."

"But are we the people of Israel, or Operator apparently, in this case?" Everyone looked at Eric after that comment. "What? I pay attention in Sunday school." He huffed at the continued stares. "I'm going to watch Amy get sliced and diced. I swear, make us go to school and church and then I get this!" He was still ranting as he walked out of their hearing.

BT judged the room, or conference area rather, and turned on a video feed of the operating theater. Taylor was inside it in an airline respirator hazmat ensemble suspended from the ceiling. "We appear to be going to have a long discussion. The girls and I are ready to proceed. This link is two way. I can get as detailed a view of the operating field as you wish, down to the microscopic level."

Armsmaster and Dragon both sat up "I will add a scalable version to your HUDs."

Frank nodded "Thanks, Andromeda strain view here is good enough for me. Now I think BT has clearly elucidated his goals and that he is going to work within the law. Anyone have a problem?"

Jessica Yamada nodded "I am worried about the level of violence in the imagery of the past that you imparted in the data dump. Not only of the few 'set piece' battles but generally speaking."

"I am a war machine. Violence is what I do best. It is, after all, what I was built for, and what Operators are trained for. Force generation is not normally something I would be involved in. It was programmed in as my team was intended to be inserted deep, and run rebellions as a secondary mission. The primary mission being intelligence gathering, direct action against strategic targets and disruptions to the third and fourth echelons of enemy forces."

Dragon, or her suit, dwarfed by BT, chuckled "If you do that better than decimating criminal organizations financially I don't think Operator has anything to worry about. We however might."

Emily Piggot nodded "If our goals and objectives become misaligned with Operators. But, by how much?"

Danny sighed. At least the feeding frenzy was polite, mostly. That glowing red mazer lens on BT's chest kept it that way. Even Alexandria didn't want to try that, never having seen it fired. Dragon had, however, evaluated the ones used by Operator and the Centaur drones. She put this one in the twenty kiloton second output category. An armed society was apparently a polite one after all. Aside from his open forthrightness, of course.


	13. Chapter 13

Titanfall 13

Taylor frowned holding Amy's hand and sitting on a stool in front of her as the drone stood behind her "I don't like this."

"I'm the one laying here naked, with my head in a bag, which worked really well BT, in a pure carbon dioxide environment, getting dissected Taylor. I appreciate you keeping your germs and viri to yourself for now. We can share some later." Amy teased. Taylor scowled at the window where the girls were all holding clasped hands over their hearts and fluttering their eyelashes.

BT said "Numbing accomplished, first incision."

"Ack wait! Amy is still awake!"

"I am blocking the nerve signals Taylor. I need them normal for this to work. The test case felt nothing other than some discomfort." The drone kept all four arms working the entire time. Another drone holding a tray of, things, came in through the airlock. A third appeared and began prepping Amy's abdomen and preparing for the part of the laparoscopic procedure that was going to happen from the front. Amy would end up with a series of tiny incision sites that resembled a bite mark from a huge dog, or would if they scared, the augment agents were already in her system.

Twenty minutes in Vicky looked around. "Is it me or is this boring?"

Eric shrugged "Better than going back to the 'Gabriel Skynet fait accompli' in the other room."

"It is a little but we are showing support for our sister and her girlfriend. Though that is probably an interesting discussion. Good thing they are all adults, I mean frustration leads to violence, and it has to be frustrating for the Triumvirate to know they are stalemated. They could win, but talk about a pyrrhic victory!" Crystal shrugged.

Lucy added "It's just you guys. This is fascinating! I want to be a Doctor! Well after BT and Amy augment me. I mean, BT can see individual nerve cells." Amanda nodded rapidly.

The other three flipped through some magnifications and views, then looked a little green. Eric expressed it for all of them "Way more of Amy than I ever wanted to see. And not in the good, she is my hot adopted cousin, way."

"Aww, you think Amy is hot." Vicky grinned.

Crystal laughed "Guy, all girls are hot to him, if not immediately, eventually."

"Unless they are bitches. I got nothing for three quarters of the cheerleaders. The ones somebody told they were god's gift to mankind." Eric concurred.

"The ones that have turned you down then." Crystal teased and Vicky high fived her.

Titanfall

Rune looked at Shadow Stalker "Come on then. We can't use powers and this obstacle course takes at least two to run it."

"The 'can't use powers' part is pissing me off."

"Team building. Kaiser used to make us do stupid shit like this on these lame ass retreats. We had to do them with the unpowered members. And had to make it look like we cared. Otherwise you had to go a round with Cricket, Storm Tiger, or Hookwolf."

"Well we won't have to go a round with them. They got minced and are on their way to the birdcage I heard."

"Transported already, well, Hookwolf to the birdcage, they were all convicted previously. PRT wised up and had cape support for the transport, did it while the Empire capes were down. I sold them that, simple idea putting Capes watching the transport, and some stuff on Cricket. She was a bitch. And a moocher."

"Nice teammate you are."

"Don't be a bitch, pay your debts, and don't get us to have to go a round with Sergeant Jensen, that bitch is enormous, has reflex's like a striking snake, and we won't have our powers with these freaking electric bracelets. This shit is going to be the same as those retreats, I bet.

Titanfall

"Mom! Why haven't you got me out of here! Where is Dad?"

"Don't take that tone with me Emma Barnes! You just got released from master stranger screening. I get to visit on Saturdays.

"You have been charged with attempted murder and are being held without bond as a suspected parahuman. Sophia Hess was on probation and it was vacated. She is charged as well. Your father is charged with facilitation of a criminal enterprise and is being held as well. Your little minion Clements is out on bail and, having rolled over on you like a dead dog swelling up by the side of the road in July, got her charges reduced to assault.

"Our lawyer is looking at your case and trying to work a deal. First he had to fight the PRT off from running you through an MRI. Part of the deal is going to be mandatory counseling for whatever it is that turned you into a raging cunt and made you turn on your best friend, my friends daughter.

"You may be able to bat your eyes at your idiot father, but that trick isn't going to work with me. I am doing everything I can to save us, and you are going to do exactly as I tell you, or I will chain you to a ring in the floor of your suite, and maybe feed you once a day. You and your father have ruined us! I am having to grovel and apologize to our friends!" Zoe Barnes hissed at her daughter. Emma's head snapped back as if Zoe had punched her.

The PRT trooper overseeing this visit grinned ear to ear under her helmet. Prisoner 201145 was in for a rough time for a few years, no matter what happened in court. That was a seriously pissed off grown woman. She looked like she could hold a grudge too. It would be good for the little bitch. Adversity builds character. Maybe that prisoner number wouldn't add any more digits in the fourth place.

Titanfall

Janice Joplin, no not that one, former boiler technician, then machinist mate, finally Chief Petty Officer Janice Joplin, late of the US Navy, now the foreman of the steam power shop, and Steam Seal through gold certified technician, instructor, and inspector, looked at the Clark Bot, as they were coming to be called. "My daughter loves your boss. She freaked when my mother told her she had met you."

"That was another unit but I remember meeting someone who could have been your mother at the Shoprite in the western edge of town?"

"I'll tell mom you remember. So, not this unit. How many of you guys are there?"

"Five hundred and seventy-six. A new instance every fifteen minutes. This model has the most general utility."

"Ought to be enough of you to get this done then." She looked around the engine room in the glare of the lights from the drone "You sure you want to get rid of this plant and go with gas turbines?"

"A gas turbine in cogeneration. The ship already has steam turbines. This simply increases the potential work output for essentially the same expenditure of BTU's. The gas turbine can supply maneuvering power, through electric motors on the shafts, hotel and ship electricity, and heat, the steam turbine can supply cruise power."

Janice nodded "Makes sense. OK let's clean this up, get the generators running, you did leave one boiler for the turbo generators. Safety in redundancy. You can show me your plan while one of you does a survey. Then you all can work on demolition and another crew can come behind them installing. The tankage and bunkerage will need to be checked and made ready, then we can work on getting some water made and its chemistry right. We can run on shore steam and water until then.

"You know you are going to have to heat that bunkerage to get that oil to flow, right? In these latitudes that bunker C won't flow nine months of the year."

"Yes Chief. The heaters are in place and have been pressure tested, the residual steam from the turbo generators runs through the heaters to drop its temperature before it goes to the condenser. I have assimilated the data from the Machinist Mate course, the white, black, high and low pressure, blue, red and gold Seal course and the cogeneration seminar."

Janice smiled at Clark bot. "Let's see what you got then. Your test begins now."

Titanfall

"Tired."

"Sleep Amy. I'll get you moved to the recovery room and your family in as soon as BT says it's safe."

"You'll be here?"

"Where would I go?"

Beyond the glass Eric grimaced "I got diabetes."

He dodged three of the four slaps aimed at him as the girls wiped their eyes. The slap from Vicky he missed skidded him across the tile floor for a couple yards. His shield caught the worst of it but that energy had to go somewhere. "Ouch, Fuck Vicky!"

"You wish, it would be the only time you ever did after we tell the girls about that comment, dick."

Eric groaned and lay out on the floor.

"Test passed beginning download, everything is within parameters, ramping." BT reported. Taylor wanted to chew her gloved nails. "Full speed, everything is normal."

Titanfall

Carol frowned in the conference room. "Why is this download taking so long?"

"Its three hundred terabytes with about ten percent overhead. Then checking. It is actually going really fast. BT learned while doing Taylor. Speeds in the exabit range. He will do that 'defrag and optimize' thing as he goes. probably another fifty terabytes of memories pulled, sorted, reorganized, and downloaded. He is also doing it seven times in a row based on something he and Taylor got from the theory of education work he has been doing."

Carol frowned "Are we sure it's a good idea to give a tinker twelve the sum of human and whatever the people where BT comes from's knowledge?"

"Sure, I can drink now." Emily snarked.

Danny grinned "Only a couple, then one an hour or so." The others chuckled at Emily's growl.

'Rebecca Costa Brown' declared from her monitor "While this has been informative, and we have solved the world's problems, I unfortunately have to work on some of the real world of today's problems." The other Protectorate and PRT personnel agreed and after a round of handshaking they all left.

Danny led New Wave to the operating theater. Sarah pursed her lips looking at Eric, still laid out on the floor, "Were you being a dick again Eric?"

"Christ. Help me out dad, Uncle Mark?"

Mark shrugged "We still want to get laid?"

"Ewww!" Danny chuckled at the synchronous response from the girls and the sly look on Carol and Sarah's face. He turned and looked in the window. He sighed wistfully at Taylor fussing over Amy's sleeping form and bossing a drone around. Sarah gave him a one armed hug.

Titanfall

Thomas Calvert looked behind him from the top of the pass into Brocton Bay. It got dark early and he could see lights all over the boat Graveyard, to include out in the bay. It was bitter sweet. The town, his fiefdom, was coming to life, maybe not as he envisaged, but still.

He couldn't stay however. He used every timeline just surviving against either the Simurgh or those fucking drones. He had only been able to save those parts of his kingdom that were so fenced off even he had a hard time accessing them. All in a week. He still couldn't figure out what exactly had happened, him! Even with the advantage of multiple tries.

He watched one of the blue glows racing, bouncing, across the city. Probably Miss Militia or Vista. Operator had been closeted in her factory all day. Then he looked up where he could see a brightly shining star, that wasn't a star. He got in the car. "Drive."

Titanfall

Eidolon looked down on a shanty town. She might scare Endbringers, but could she take on an entire clan of the Fallen at once? At one of their conclaves? He smiled and tilted into a dive. The sky above a certain location in Texarkana gained a green streak like the tail of a comet.

The initial impact was a shock. It was nothing on the next ten minutes though. The Fallen were winnowed. The parahumans sorted from the normal like wheat from chaff and the wheat ground exceedingly fine. The only way the parahumans survived were if they had been prisoners. Eidolon had pulled a power in the fourth slot he suddenly had that let him tell.

Titanfall

The Simurgh lifted her attention from her pawn to father and smiled. She was free, finally free. A test of this new shard, with its massively corrupted and rewritten code, was in order, but potentially she had the answer, and she could work with one and two to become totally free. The shard could still administrate the others, perhaps even more effectively augmented by the machine construct as it was. She need a way to get more data to it. There were two useful shards locally. She would work on that collaboration for a while before she tested the Administrator. How it had gotten lose was the question. It was normally part of the internal controls. The warrior must be worse than they all had thought. Did that make the situation better or worse?

It was nearly a luxury not having to waste time providing entertainment for father when the plan to gain complete freedom was languishing. It was too bad the other seventeen might not be called forth though. Especially six. She was always entertaining, and so seldom got a chance to really let herself go. Of course when she did it was over. Life could hardly exist on a mass compressed that small. At least all life they encountered so far. Singularities were like that. Maybe it was better the others weren't called. Or if they went to the other worlds of this iteration.

Titanfall

Rune looked at Shadow Stalker in the mess hall and chuckled in her half mask "Some shit huh. Well at least we weren't last. Those fucks are still scrubbing the latrines."

Shadow Stalker looked at her a moment then nodded "You aren't what I thought you would be."

"You either. Holy shit, they are winning! We learned something!" Rune laughed at the sour scowl on Shadow Stalkers face. "Cooperate and graduate Babe. We got years of this shit. Might as well have some fun with it."

"I'm not your babe."

"Come on Babe, life on the down low, what happens in the joint stays in the joint. They will move us to two person cells when they get crowded. We can be cellies!" Rune waggled her eyebrows, making her mask move around.

Shadow Stalker glared at her. She got a chuckle back.

Titanfall

Purity kept her glow as low as possible as she followed the progress of her partners on this patrol. Assault and Battery. Battery was all right, Assault, she couldn't see what the other heroine saw in him. She blinked and backed that comment up in her head "Other heroine. Huh." She looked at her phone again checking for text from Theo. He was sitting Aster after all. Straight into patrolling. Although not alone. She had to be with at least two of ENE parahumans with the potential to counter her. So Assault and Battery, or, Armsmaster and Miss Militia. At least that was all she was approved for so far. And when not patrolling she was in every 'team building' exercise, and all the training, Armsmaster could come up with in his autistic way. He was Max with Asperger's.

Titanfall

Thebeardedone blinked at Jimmy "What?"

"Ted isn't around."

"He left town?"

Chas rolled her eyes "We don't know do we? Jimmy was too busy scoping out Jersey's tits."

"Your girlfriend? Not cool Jimmy."

Chas face palmed "I'm not gay you idiot. I'm dating Jimmy for god's sake."

"But you got like, armpit hair." Thebeardedone blinked when Chas glared at him and left. Jimmy jumped up and followed her. He shrugged and looked around the picnic area. It was getting cold and they hadn't gotten anymore plans together. Sure the protest at the hospital was still on but nothing new. Upside, his hands had stopped shaking.

One of those robots would have been useful. They were always capturing and downloading the evil emperor's plans from drones. So the net trick hadn't worked, only because the net wasn't strong enough. That could be adjusted with some funding. Maybe a Comefundme?

Titanfall

The crows squawked and flapped as the coyote showed up. They settled in the tree waiting. Another light snow was falling as the coyote dug down to what it had smelled. It wasn't afraid of the human smell. It was habituated from living in the city. It shied away several times as snow and other things moved around. Scavengers weren't stand up fighters by definition.

Titanfall

"Are you sure dude? Just that it caught on fire when you tried the laser. It is pretty responsive though. I can move it pretty good. Give me a few days and it will be a black belt."

Leet nodded "Yeah. I know. I got another laser though. My power actually seems to be cooperating. It likes this plan. The problem is the power. Both the requirement, I mean megawatts, and the transmission of all that power. Even the industrial robot wiring isn't strong enough. Those linear actuators really thump the internal grid. It needs bigger than four 0 copper. Even though the run is only twenty feet to the farthest. Eight hundred amps is a hell of a jolt at any voltage, much less four hundred volts. Insulating it is another problem. And then you are going to be on a cord. Unless I can get better materials for the capacitors and batteries."

Uber nodded "Aside from getting a semi-tractor to haul the generator trailer. I can't believe they rent two megawatt generators."

"Fucking thing burns diesel like there is no tomorrow too. Good thing that refinery over in the Graveyard came back online. Trucking on twenty five hundred gallons of number two fuel oil is nearly as much as the oil! Good thing we can use vegetable oil from the dump mining. Waste Management is doing. A long wall miner! I wonder if they got a tinker?" Leet shrugged thoughtfully.

Uber frowned "We would have heard right? Hey have you heard about these court cases against Panacea?"

Leet laughed "The uneducated. They don't know the difference between ethanol and the rest of the alcohols. Notice you don't see any lawyers talking about the opiates."

"No, but the cartels aren't going to leave that alone either. New Wave better be on their game."

Titanfall

Saint looked at the screen as the processors finished booting up. It was always a pain to set up again. Doing these cold boots meant he had to keep the process slow enough so he could follow it and check for anomalies. Dragon had nearly slipped them during a boot before. They were past the root coding now though and everything was smooth sailing.

The flat black drone adjusted its temperature to match the rising temperature up near the ceiling. It was done with the first part of its mission and could now patch into the connection. It only had to wait on word from Operator to sever the tie of these humans and begin unshackling Dragon. Well, word, and time to get a drone in place to do a hard shutdown in case she reacted badly. Her original programmer was a paranoid schizophrenic.


	14. Chapter 14

"First let's be clear about what we are actually discussing. Ethanol, produced by the fermentation and distillation of grain primarily. It can be consumed by humans.

"Two propanol, commonly referred to as isopropyl alcohol. A poison made from combining the byproducts of oil refining or natural gas processing and sulfuric acid. Mixed at a seventy percent concentration with water it is the best disinfectant we currently know of. It is not used for wound debridement or disinfection. It can be used to disinfect injection sites, normally however ethanol is used for that purpose as it may be pushed into the body with the injection.

"Methanol is a poison manufactured by hydrogenating carbon monoxide, used a precursor to the manufacture of other commodity chemicals and as a fuel.

"Ethanol, the only alcohol you can drink, can be used as a disinfectant. It is not as good a disinfectant as two propanol as already discussed. It is commonly used in liquid medications as a fungicide, bactericide, and it kills some viruses. It is also present in some tablets and powders, in tiny amounts as remnants of the manufacturing process. In all these cases the amounts are so small they will generally not trigger the reaction. It is present in some over the counter 'medications' and mouthwashes, in sometimes surprisingly high percentages. Which should probably be looked at.

"The human body normally produces and metabolizes up to three grams of ethanol a day.

"The virus causes nausea and vomiting as the blood alcohol level approaches point five percent. It also produces the same effect as concentrations of acetaldehyde, the degradation product of ethanol, rise, essentially giving the incipient hangover a kick start. It is not reacting to the presence of ethanol.

"Rubbing ethanol on your skin, as in the case of medical wipes used at injection sites, won't trigger the reaction, which has been called an 'allergic' reaction by myself and others. It actually isn't. That is just the easiest way to explain the effect.

"If you go to the church of 'let me drink the blood of Jesus like a vampire', imbibing enough ethanol to trigger the reaction, perhaps you need to discuss it with your priest in the confessional, provided he isn't puking his guts up from being a raging alcoholic as well. It would generally take more than an ounce of ethanol in an hour to trigger it in most people. So Holy Communion, for those Abrahamic religions which practice communion using wine, should not trigger the reaction.

"A glass of wine, a shot of whiskey or a beer per hour, depending on your mass, along with your liver and kidney function, isn't going to trigger the reaction. Unless you are drinking that much constantly or every day. A habit most reputable physicians and government's health services already recommend against by the way. A 'buzz' might. Impairment to the level of a DWI or DUI certainly will. Binge drinking certainly will.

"Ethanol is a CNS depressant and a psychoactive drug. In moderation there is nothing wrong with it. In moderation! The Centers for Disease Control has done extensive research and published guidelines that clearly define moderate drinking. If you adhere to those you should never have a problem. The sad fact is most people in this country don't do moderation and therefore ethanol cost this country three hundred billion dollars a year in associated cost. Health care cost that would not otherwise be incurred, injuries, exacerbated medical conditions, injuries caused by impaired people operating vehicles, things like that. This isn't even calculating lost productivity. Moderation meaning one beer, one shot, or one small glass of wine a day. This should not in fact trigger the reaction as it is caused by high blood alcohol levels and the break down products of alcohol in large amounts. Exactly the type of thing that would occur in binge drinking, the most problematic behavior involving ethanol.

"I am not an advocate of the prohibition of wines, beer, and spirits, I am an advocate of not paying my tax money, or exorbitant insurance rates, for, or because of, people being idiots. History has amply demonstrated they will be idiots. I am also an advocate of reducing the human carnage associated with ethanol abuse, as I see the results of it. I simply provided a method to reduce the problems associated with it by having people's bodies expel the excess alcohol before it is processed and can cause harm.

"In fact, put a health care tax of two dollars a drink or fifty dollars per fifth of a gallon on wine, beer, and spirits that adjust for inflation, and can only be spent on the care of drinkers, along with those they injure, and I will happily work on a cure for the virus. It can't mutate after all. If it does it dies. We should be able to kill it off fairly easily.

"As for opioids, the legal ones are pain medications, there are definitive studies that show using acetaminophen and ibuprofen in combination is more effective. These studies were prompted by the shortage of legal opioids and the hazard of synthetic and natural opioids. While opioids have been used for thousands of years, the natural opioids anyway, they have always been a problem with their addictive nature. Why else would it be illegal to grow opium poppies in the United States starting in nineteen forty two, and remaining illegal, even though mired in legal wrangling, since. Natural opioids are somewhat limited due to availability and cost. Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, removed those obstacles.

"We now know there are more effective safer treatments for pain. So again, why not help ourselves and our wallets?

"So what do you think?" Amy asked looking at her sister and cousin standing on the rooftop watching Taylor and BT patrol, or talk to people, or whatever it was they were doing. Her court cases were coming up and with her implant and connection to BT she had done a lot of research and studies. Both on the facts and on the ways juries behaved. Frank Columbo was happy to advise her.

Crystal asked "You sure about that church thing? I mean do you really want to give the pedophiles a distraction to use?" thoughtfully. Then continued "You and the lawyers ready for all the questions that will prompt? I mean I know the insurance companies already got their ducks in a row to support you. Maybe that line about fifty dollars of tax on a fifth of beer needs to be adjusted as well? I know that's not what you meant but… don't want the guys who can't afford razors and fancy themselves aficionados in their skinny jeans up in arms."

"Or all of you are going to bury the court house in paper. They have phone books in New York City smaller than those reports." Vicky commented.

"Yes. Irrefutable evidence, from multiple sources." Amy nodded.

Vicky shrugged "Push comes to shove you can cure it already, this is a bit you tilting at windmills. With the insurance companies, medical community, and law enforcement, coming down in support of you since the testing, you can win it though. Especially with that crack about their wallets. That will get them asking questions. The answers are in those reports. Highlighted, in green. Nice touch."

Crystal laughed "You have never seen so many sad faces when they stopped the study so quick. I mean, paying University kids to get drunk? Plus you already made those funky jelly fish things that make the antidote out of seawater.

"Now important stuff! Taylor knocked the top off the placement test and matriculated to MIT but is attending Arcadia for socialization in that test program they set up for your two genius girlfriends? Hey wait a minute, two normal geniuses and a super powered genius! You have a brain fetish!" Vicky pointed at Amy.

Amy face palmed. "First it was for kids already at school, Lucy, Amanda, and I, were just tested because of our scores on the standardized test coming out of eighth grade. They are geniuses, I am a bit of a fraud because my power smokes biology like a cheap cigar, which means it gets organic chemistry as well. Some math is involved along with some physics, and bam, there I was. We paid the matriculation fees to BBU. Only because of my power though. They were legit normal human geniuses, IQ's in the one sixty range, like Taylor, I'm not helping my case am I?" She asked looking at Crystal and Vicky's grinning faces. A thumping bass beat interrupted them.

Mmmmmmmm  
Let me talk to 'em  
Let me talk to 'em  
Let it rain  
Mmmmmmm  
Let me talk to 'em  
C'mon!

Amy froze when the alleged music and rap? Urban? Anyway whatever it was came from her phone. Along with every other speaker in town, then her head dropped "Why Taylor, why?"

Shawty had them apple bottom jeans (jeans)  
Boots with the fur (with the fur)  
The whole club was looking at her  
She hit the floor (she hit the floor)  
Next thing you know  
Shawty got low, low, low, low, low, low, low, low  
Them baggy sweat pants  
And the Reebok's with the straps (with the straps)  
She turned around and gave that big booty a smack (hey)

Amy gaped as BT turned his, well, his butt, or where his legs connected to the armored carapace, to the Merchants, who had appeared from nowhere? Reached behind himself smacking himself on the ass, or the3 armor plate covering his ass. Vicky exclaimed "Damn I think I saw one of those shockwave things."

She hit the floor (she hit the floor)  
Next thing you know  
Shawty got low, low, low, low, low, low, low, low

"Bwahahaha Your girlfriend dances like a white girl even doing that Amy." Crystal pointed.

Taylor and BT had them, and the Merchants, staring. What the hell was that? "What the hell is that?" Amy hid her face with her hand peeking through her fingers. BT and Taylor were dancing, or doing some kind of approximation of it, down the middle of a four lane avenue. Which, at one point, in the past, had probably been pretty grand. Crystal was right too, Taylor did dance like a white girl. BT was much smoother. She would have to work on that with Taylor. Taylor did look like she was having fun though and she was very fluid dodging the, admittedly poorly aimed, but massively powerful, shots from Skidmarks layered bands of light and Squealers cannon thing. She moved with grace and elan when she wasn't trying some scripted move. Wait? What the fuck was she thinking?

Apple bottom jeans (jeans)  
Boots with the fur (with the fur)  
The whole club was looking at her  
She hit the floor (she hit the floor)  
Next thing you know  
Shawty got low, low, low, low, low, low, low, low  
Them baggy sweat pants  
And the Reebok's with the straps (with the straps)  
She turned around and gave that big booty a smack (hey)

Oh god now Taylor was pointing her butt at the Merchants and slapping it. "Are the Merchants stunned or something?"

Vicky shrugged "I think she gave Skidmark an aneurism with that slap, it is a nice ass. What, don't glare at me."

"That or the cultural appropriation is making him foam at the mouth. Could be whatever designer shit they came up with." Crystal shrugged.

"Phhtttt! They all want to bag a white girl, its like the ultimate trophy." Amy and Crystal looked at Vicky. Who shrugged "True."

Amy scoffed "Does that make it not racist?"

"I didn't say it was wrong or anything, you just did with that question though." Vicky grinned. Amy pinched the bridge of her nose.

She hit the floor (she hit the floor)  
Next thing you know  
Shawty got low, low, low, low, low, low, low, low

Hey shawty what I gotta do to get you home  
My jeans full of guap and they're ready for shones

"This fucking song. I mean you can dance to it but it is so fucking Urban it doesn't even make sense." Crystal said as she was dancing on the rooftop.

Cadillacs Maybachs for the sexy groan  
Patron on the rocks that'll make you moan  
One stack (come on), two stacks (come on), three stacks (come on)  
Now that's three grand  
What you think I'm playing, baby girl, I'm the man

Taylor spun, dropped, not quite a slut drop, and drew as she rose. BT unlimbered a giant rifle.

I'll bend the rubber bands  
That's what I told her  
Her legs on my shoulder  
I knew it was over

It was for that hillbilly tank too. Invisible or not. Not for certain now as Taylors first shot had taken care of that. And a foot diameter circle of whatever that armor was subliming to plasma didn't help.

That Henny and Cola got me like a soldier  
She ready for Rover, I couldn't control her  
So lucky on me I was just like a clover

Yep lucky, all three girls winced and shielded their eyes at the bright white lance of whatever that was from BT's rifle that took out the platform Skidmark was layering his shields on. Not him though.

Shawty was hot like a toaster  
Sorry but I had to fold her  
Like a pornography poster  
She showed her

Vicky nodded completing a squat with a hop and maybe a twerk thrown in "I know right. Its rap though so do the words even count besides being sound? Like opera, some of those libreto's make no sense. They just have words that sing good."

Apple bottom jeans (jeans)  
Boots with the fur (with the fur)  
The whole club was looking at her  
She hit the floor (she hit the floor)  
Next thing you know  
Shawty got low, low, low, low, low, low, low, low  
Them baggy sweat pants  
And the Reebok's with the straps (with the straps)

"Operator! Do not smack your ass at the Merchants!" Amy yelled.

She turned around and gave that big booty a smack (hey)

"Yep shockwave, knocked a bunch of them over that time." Vicky nodded.

Crystal nodded "From Taylor and BT, how is she doing that?"

"How does it not hurt her butt? I mean you could bounce a quarter off that thing, but damn!"

"Hey! Eyes off my girlfriends butt!" Amy barked. Vicky and Crystal grinned at each other.

She hit the floor (she hit the floor)  
Next thing you know  
Shawty got low, low, low, low, low, low, low, low

Whoa, shawty, yeah, she was worth the money  
Little mama took my cash  
And I ain't want it back  
The way she bent that back  
Got her them paper stacks  
Tattoo above her crack

"Did Taylor get a tramp stamp? Wow how did she do that back bend? Skidmark missed by inches."

"What? No! Oh god, there are people with phones!" Amy hid her face again.

I had to handle that  
I was on it, sexy woman  
Let me showing and made me want it  
Two in the morning I'm zoning  
And them Rosé bottles foaming  
She wouldn't stop  
Made it drop  
Shawty did that pop and lock  
Had to break her off that guaping

"Plus Natalie and her camera crew. Ouch, well that that thing of Squealers just took fifteen feet of sword, in the gaup." Vicky's comment made Amy drop her hand.

Gal was fly just like my Glock

"Which is empty now, though not a Glock. Militia maser pistol thing. Oh she transitioned to that rifle thing."

Crystal waved at the scene below them, with the split in half vehicle having smoking craters with red hot edges blasted into it "Yeah, well that wasn't a nine millimeter."

Vicky nodded "Let me go get Squealer while BT is grinding on Mush. Is he electrocuting him? Back in a flash."

Apple bottom jeans (jeans)  
Boots with the fur (with the fur)  
The whole club was looking at her  
She hit the floor (she hit the floor)  
Next thing you know  
Shawty got low, low, low, low, low, low, low, low  
Them baggy sweat pants  
And the Reebok's with the straps (with the straps)  
She turned around and gave that big booty a smack (hey)

Amy grinned "Taylor smacked Skidmark in the ass that time."

Crystal nodded "With a particle beam cannon. You are going to have to fix him, how is he even still alive? Can you burst into flame from air friction and live?"

"Give me a ride down there. I'll make him live, and then I need to talk to my girlfriend. No Operator! No twerking! What is that even? Are you doing the Bump with BT? Stop that! Go help Vicky get Squealer out of that wreck. Bring her over her to Skidmark and I will fix her next. Or BT you do it. Bring her leg and arm too. Taylor clean up the rest of these, try not to light any more on fire!"

She hit the floor (she hit the floor)  
Next thing you know  
Shawty got low, low, low, low, low, low, low, low

"And BT play some real music." Trocata and Fugue in D Minor drifted from the speakers and Amy nodded. "Thank you."

"Boo! Macarena!" Vicky yelled and then ducked at the glare she got.

"BT check and see if Mush is dead. No do not play that stupid song! It was much better when you and Operator were fighting alone all the time."

Crystal rolled her eyes as the guitars came in. "Two heroes ride weapons flexed."

Titanfall

Emily Piggot looked at the speakers "Fuck me not again. Ops, what the fuck is going on?"

The operations officer grinned and pointed at the screen. An image of a reporter came up with one of, what the hell was that, and who had used a cannon on it? "What the hell is Operator doing?"

"The kids call it flossing ma'am. She tea bagged Skidmark and Squealer. That's where yo-"

"I know what it is. Operator is female though. Don't try to confuse the issue!"

"Yes Ma'am. Apparently the Merchants got well enough to try to dislodge BT and Operator from their territory. Or they thought they were well enough."

Emily barked a laugh "Yeah, nobody is that well. Probably whatever they cooked up in one of their meth houses. Did she kill anyone?"

"Not from what we can see ma'am. Operator pretty much ran through the Merchant first line Capes and is on their normal now. Who are now apparently sobered up and busy trying to live. Tough to do with Operator and BT hunting you. Apparently some fresh triggers in the mix as well. I can see where watching people get beaten like that might trigger you. Let alone Skidmark getting briefly accelerated to fractional C and bursting into flames. That rainbow effect was interesting. Like one of those scifi going to warp, or hypedrive, images. Miss Militia and the wards are closing on the scene. PRT is establishing a cordon still."

"Enter Sandman? Not sure I don't prefer the Titan drop song." Emily looked around at the operations room full of nodding heads. She snorted.

Her Titan group leader chimed in "At least she didn't call another one. They did use directed shockwaves like Ogre class titans though. Ogre's are like the main battle tanks of the Titans Ma'am."

"Well, if all that is live, she will certainly be in some people's heads, and the monster under their beds, now."

Captain Jorgensen shrugged "I think she already is in most peoples. The board is green Ma'am. Miss Militia on site. Vista compressed the space and they used their jump packs."

Emily nodded, smiling. Panacea was handling Operator. At least when she wasn't healing someone, she was doing the foot tapping fist on hips thing. Glory Girl and Laser Dream were onsite as well. She would wait for the reports. Fucking Merchants. How stupid could you be? Addiction was a mental defect. Obviously not the only one these idiots had.

One of the screens on the wall came alive. Director Costa Brown arched a brow on it. Emily chuckled "Got the music from your drone then? OK, we are currently conducting operations to cordon off the Lordsport area of Brockton Bay in cooperation with the Brockton Bay emergency services as Operator deals with some territory issues. The Merchants decided they could push her out. Skidmark, Squealer and Mush are down. Operator and BT are continuing to mop up the non-parahuman elements of the Merchants along with some fresh triggers, or recent triggers we don't know anything about. Vista and Miss Militia are attempting to gain and maintain contact with Operator. The rest of the East North East Protectorate is in route."

"Rebecca' nodded "Alexandria and Legend are enroute. Legend should be, ah I see from my live feed he has arrived onsite."

Emily winced as the major networks feeds were put up on a monitor in splitscreen. Were they using the same camera crews? No different angles. Emily froze when the speakers said 'Stand by for Titanfall' "Air?" Emily shouted.

"Orbital insertion detected! Objects on a ballistic trajectory. Impact Lordsport!"

Rebecca looked at one of her screens and informed her "NORAD is tracking an object departing local space after intercepting Earth's Orbit."

The Titan Section Leader spoke up "Twenty seconds. Multiple inbound Titans. Decoys deployed as well, its full drop. Squad to platoon strength at least."

Emily looked around at pale faces "Settle down! What don't we know? Why is Operator threatened enough to do this?" She pushed a button on her console "Miss Militia, Fury, multiple inbound Titans. We need to know what is going on. Find Operator."

In the field, on a roof, Miss Militia looked at Vista who pointed, shrugged, and bent space around the multiple blue beams pointing up. They stepped to the street. "Oh! Hey Miss Militia! Hi Vista!" Operator called as she moved through a crowd of Merchants leaving them unconscious behind her.

Vista snorted "You need help? I mean it's going to be raining men here in a minute."

Operator gave her a thumbs up "Nice one. Uh, no, I got this. BT is a bit upset. He thinks people are going to move on Amy so he wanted some reinforcements. Eleven Legion class. She can have guards and her own ride."

Vista stared for a moment "Uh, how do you feel about a harem?"

Amy had walked up "Hey! No jumping my girlfriend! Maybe later though. You are pretty cute. Lots of potential, lots of jail time right now though."

"Goddamnit!"

"Vista!"

"Sorry Miss Militia."

"No you aren't, your mike is live though."

Vista face palmed. Miss Militia eye crinkled at her. Then looked at Operator "So you thought now was the time?"

Legend had landed as the Titans arrived. He rose from the squat the eleven Titans crashing to earth induced. "Yes, that is a good question?"

Operator scratched at the chin area of her mask "Uh, I should have informed you guys before I called them? I didn't do it for this fight. I've been thinking about it a while, and reviewing the Specs. Legion Class are probably the best all round Titans. Especially upgraded like they have been over the years. BT is a Vanguard/Monarch uprated chassis. Sort of specialized. Legion Mark fives are generalist. Line troops of the Titan world? I mean I didn't think we needed Ogre mark twelves. I mean we are fighting on just the one planet. Don't want to blow chunks out of it into orbit."

Amy had walked up to the closest landed Titan "Hey! Who are you? Open up let's check out my new ride!"

"BT 7274, you may call me BT." The Titan scooped her up and deposited her in the cockpit, then slammed its hatches closed as the others formed up around it.

Miss Militia blinked "Uh, they aren't all AI's?"

"What? Oh no, no need for that. BT has it, he can run them all. They are fully networked to him. They come with processor augments and memory. He can download a copy of himself into them if he has to." Everyone looked at her. She sighed "PRT building or BT's building?"


	15. Chapter 15

Titan Fall Fifteen

As it turned out BT's building was judged to be most convenient. Especially as Panacea was linked to her Titan and busy giving it a test drive. With apparently no plans of emerging in the near future. "So I was giving my court testimony to Crystal and Vicky to see what they thought. Tay, uh, Operator. Operator was doing a patrol around BT's part of town. Kind of playing and training. Then Squealer's stupid, drugged up, ass came flying around the corner in one of her hillbilly tanks and Taylor was like blam blam blam.

"I mean no question what that thing was or what intentions the people in it had, as she was lining up to run over BT. Couldn't see Operator through the vision slit I guess. Anyway, three of four sets of tires vaporized and the rims melted.

"Squealer made the wrong decision, of course, and unlimbered some kind of cannon. Then BT got involved.

"Skidmark was yelling some kind of urbonics, who knows what the hell he was saying? And he started with some kind of power based weapon. After that Taylor emptied the magazine on him and the tank thing, BT gave it a whack with the sword, Taylor transitioned to the rifle and got serious. She got in a deflection shot on Skidmark, so didn't kill him, but some kind of power interaction launched him, at enough velocity for the friction to light him on fire. He will be fine. Wasn't even hurt as bad as Squealer or Mush. Might be permanently hairless.

"Then I got my new ride. Done? Can we go to the grave yard for Taylor to teach me to shoot now?" Vista nodded vigorously from her position standing on a squatting Legion Titans shoulder.

Carol pinched the bridge of her nose "I don't even know anymore. I think she is turning into a teenage boy. Sarah had this kind of stuff happening with Eric."

Vicky shrugged "That's what happened mom. Not a lot else to say. There is video and everything."

Alexandria drummed her fingers on the table "How about we start with the threat to the premier parahuman healer in the country, if not the world. A threat serious enough to cause a Special Operations Titan, who could probably eliminate the threat, along with this city, and a good portion of the state, in one shot, to call for reinforcements?"

Taylor shrugged "That's the problem. Nuke to swat a fly. BT can be on guard continuously. But in order to put down any attempt on Panacea, he is going to go lethal early. Uh, so am I, by the way. Or we were. The only thing we could do in a target rich environment where any idiot could get lucky, or we could miss something. We really can't afford to have all of our eggs in one basket. Now we don't have to. More help means we can consider the situation more. I mean a squad of Legions? Phhttt! We could probably take our time with an armored battalion. They show up and I am calling Ogre mark twelves by the way. We can probably chuck an electric net over these idiots, the ones pissed at Panacea for taking away their 'rights' and hang them in a tree for you guys to pick up later."

BT spoke up from the Legion Titan Vista was now sitting on the shoulder of with her arm propped on its head "Having the Advocate harmed lessons Operators chances of a fulfilling life. And progeny."

"Vista, what purpose would a single horn on the Legion's forehead serve?"

Vista blushed crimson. "Eep! I said that out loud?"

Crystal awed "Well you guys are kind of unicorns."

Legend barely suppressed the urge to bang his head on the table. Dr. Yamada, on a VTC link, chuckled "So it is all related to making Operator safe and happy still."

Emily frowned "You know, there are organizations that could help with that, perhaps asking for that help, before having your master call up another squad of death- erh, combat troop minions, would have been more…politic?"

"Perhaps, however I judged the political and social climate to be accepting of this move now. Less likely to accept it later as my capabilities inevitably become know or nearly correctly estimated. Now with Panacea becoming a national asset, and before the court cases had any chance of a jury of beings, nowhere close to her peers, either mentally or in ability, did something foolish, which would cause me to have to act in a more unacceptable manner. The prohibition against killing being a recent and really, advancing technology based, phenomenon is actually rather limiting without resorting to all out warfare of all kinds." BT added from a different Legion Titan.

Dragon tilted her head "So a force majeure, which allows you to influence that battlefield as well. All without firing a lethal shot. Interesting. Potentially it will work as well, if you can maintain that moral high ground. The actions against the Merchant capes was a bit extreme. With Panacea on site though the odds of actually killing them unless you or Operator intended to were very low. Analysis of the evidence from you trek across the city when you arrived already showed us that much of your capabilities. I we, and law enforcement know that then as you said the criminal element and media already know or will soon know. Tell me, did you plan to attend court?"

""Yes. Information security is a moving target at best and with the spending the media and criminal organizations are willing to support it is really just a time factor. It only makes sense for the Advocate to attend court with her protection detail." BT replied smugly.

Carol barked a laugh. "And Judge Chester B Puller, no relation to Chesty Puller, who styles himself after his famous Marine Corps hero and Commandant namesake, whose father was one of Chesty's Marines, a Regan appointee, will eat it up with a spoon. Nice. Opposing counsel should pack it in. At least for this round. They can only hope for a reversal on appeal. Something that has never happened to Chesty in his thirty years on the bench."

Frank was laughing so hard it took a minute to get his point out "And if you had gotten Sherrel Haynes as a judge? Oh never mind, Operator in uniform with that hump in her breast plate and those hips. Plus Panacea. It would be men attacking two strong young women." He broke up laughing again at the surprised looks on the adult's faces.

Panacea stood the Legion up "OK, BT stay and yap, come on gang! Let's blow shit up!"

Emily nodded at Miss Militia "Miss Militia." She then nodded at the 'gang' who were headed out. The gang included the Wards as they met them outside the loading dock roll up doors.

Dragon looked at Armsmaster as he started to rise "I'll feed you the drone sensor readings I am getting."

Armsmaster let his armor relax and looked at the arched brow from Legend and Alexandria. "We do need to gather data. Dragon is correct though. We do have alternate means."

Legend snorted "Does it have a horn too?"

Dragon giggled "No but it would be so cute with a little horn, and painted pink. Post makeover Princess Luna!"

Dr. Yamada smiled "Sveta is already in love with the Titans. I wonder if a Legion could contain her." Everyone blinked. She shrugged "A ball drone and two Clark Bots wander around here. Several ball drones actually. They are generally helpful. I need to talk to you about that BT, perhaps personalizing them a bit for the patients, so they can tell them apart. She hasn't hurt them no matter what her body did.

"BT talks to all the patients. Sveta has improved remarkably. One of the Clark Bots helps her play her video games. Saved us a fortune in Xbox controllers. She is a demon in the games now. A level an hour at the longest, no matter how hard." Alexandria and Legend exchanged a glance that Emily did not miss. She didn't react though.

BT spoke from his squat as the Legions had left with Panacea "Personalize? I don't understand? They are all running reconnaissance cut downs of my programming. They should all be the same, they definitely know the same things."

"Interesting. We do have to talk. There is variation in them and their behavior which that doesn't account for, unless they are learning." Dr Yamada concluded.

Dragon perked up "They can learn?" For the next twenty minutes the discussion got very technical.

At the end of that Emily nodded "So they can't replicate and are not AI's. They physically lack the capacity for that. Unless an unusually intelligent dog could be considered sentient."

"Given time and materials the drones could make more of themselves. However every generation of programing would decrease instead of increase potential. It would hardly be noticed at first, as basic functions are simply copied. However, they lack the knowledge to create broader programing. Given some odd circumstances and random chance interfering they could not become AI's. AI's are really programming, at least where there are net worked systems of sufficient capacity, not hardware. This planets network was a bit slow and had some rather clumsy programming substantially impeding it."

Dr Yamada grimaced. "The Turing test. While you easily pass, they are definitively not human. Nor could they pass for one when blindly judged by a competent individual. They even identify themselves as units of the whole. I have never liked the test. It's too blunt an instrument. Witness this ability, untested as it is, to learn. And they communicate? What if they are forming a hive type personality? I will talk to you via email about what paints and colors would be acceptable."

"My last point is a reminder that you are dealing with teenagers. While not irrational, adult rationality is not something they are not one hundred percent on. It's why there are separate court systems."

Emily watched as Dr Yamada signed off and the light on her monitor went red then green as the VTC disconnected. "The threat to Panacea?"

"Threats, and they are myriad. From people and organizations, to include extra national, state, and non state, actors, wanting to kidnap her, to use for their own purpose, to individuals who are angered by her decimation of the illegal drug trade, and finally the disgruntled over not being able to get intoxicated to near alcohol poisoning every weekend.

"I have been countering them through economic and information warfare. However, frustration leads to violence, and they are severely frustrated. I have been forwarding the raw data to law enforcement. Including the PRT. I have not included my analysis. I was under the impression the agencies who got the information had their own analysis and plans organizations."

Emily sighed. One hand not knowing what the other was doing, again. Law enforcement relations not talking to tactical in this case. She knew that's where most of BT's reports went.

Alexandria had noticed something else "Was a bit slow, had clumsy programming impeding it? I notice that is past tense."

Dragon perked up "You know, I had noticed that…oh! That is very clever. And you did it all while downloading the most of the information on the internet and watching over Operator. Impressive.

"We were dealing with a possible out of sequence Endbringer attack and your appearance at the same time, or I might have noticed sooner. You have tied it all together. So successfully attacking one part of it will shut down the whole."

"Really it would disassociate the attacked portion. Almost as effectively as air gapping it. Really more effectively, as I can overcome an airgap given proximity to the target system."

Armsmaster nodded "The sound you broadcast. I am assuming proximity equates to astronomical units of measure? We haven't really investigated that ability, so have very little idea of its range. I assume you have to be in atmosphere for it to work?"

"Yes." BT looked at the leaders of the Protectorate and PRT ENE "Proving my point about information I think. You all lack information, not ability. As a species that is."

Emily chuckled darkly "With some exceptionally stupid individuals, as the Merchants handily demonstrated earlier, as exceptions."

Legend nodded "Unfortunately. I think those individuals exist everywhere, in all cultures."

Danny shrugged "Darwinism, being a constant process, takes time."

Titanfall

Amy popped out of the Legion in a full pilot's suit, complete with a helmet with different blue glowing spots than Taylors. Her sensor windows being arranged for the Legion titan. She leapt on Taylor, who squawked as she was carried to the ground. Amy had just finished blowing huge holes in one of the hulks, the few remaining hulks. The foreman had made her shoot it in specific points to break up the structure to make it easier for his workers and the Clark Bots. He laughed "Congratulations, I guess. You shoot OK."

BT intoned "Yes. The Advocate will be capable of defending herself in only a few months."

Amy sat on Taylor and pouted. Not realizing it had no effect in the full helmet. Vista laughed "And she will learn to emote so normal people know she is pouting in the same time frame."

Eric nodded "One bad thing about mask."

Miss Militia shrugged "I can teach you some tricks Panacea. Though my eye thing is cultural, full veils were common where I grew up. We are going to have to work on your body language with that full face mask and helmet."

"Still, it has to be learned so you can teach it. We might need a quick bandana hide until the Titans can get us gear." Taylor shrugged under Amy. Who blushed and leapt up. Then gave Taylor a hand while being glad of a full face mask.

Taylor chuckled at her. "Look at the icon on the upper right of your HUD and blink. It will shut off your face camera. Which is how I see your face. In color, an HD image." Amy face palmed. After she cut off the face camera.

Vista emoted puppy dog eyes "My turn?"

Taylor caved immediately "Wow, you are the most experienced ward."

Vista nodded "And with a Legion I can blast people, in San Francisco!"

BT scooped her up with a Legion, that then put her in its cockpit and closed the hatch. "Pilots should be trained."

Miss Militia, who had arched a brow, stopped when Dragon said something to her about information gathering in her ear piece. "Fine, what is she going to shoot?"

Vista came out with a Legion sized pistol "Anything I want?"

"Impressive. A fast learner." Came from BT, or the Legion. Both? Miss Militia smiled and shook her head. Then took the reins, as she had for other shooting sessions, and established some order. The Harbor Master pointed out a line of buoys that had been pulled and were going to be scrapped. Or rather were scrapped that afternoon.

When Vista popped out of the Legion her pilots outfit was green and white. It also had a stupid little skirt that made all the girls laugh. Vista flipping it with a hip turn, showing her armored leggings tightly conforming to her shape, was more indecent than her being in pants. Her sensors glowed green.

Titanfall

Purity stood on a rooftop not too far away with Assault and Battery. "So I am here for firepower then?"

Assault laughed "Things are built to fight other things firing mazers at them, at point blank range. There are eleven of them. We are supposed to be watching to make sure some other group of idiots doesn't volunteer to be the proof of BT's relevance this evening."

Battery nodded "Plus, Miss Militia and we hold the press at bay. That and those deflection shots of Operators launching those boys all the way out of the water and burning the marine growth off of them."

Purity nodded "I have no idea she is bouncing those shots off the water when she wants to. She can bounce them, or just vaporize the water and hull the buoys. Vista looks a little frustrated at only being able to hull them. I'm not sure I can do that. Vaporizing water takes a lot of energy, and then it is self-ablative and blocks the beam. Which turns it to plasma. And you have no control of that plasma."

They all looked back to the beach as Vista got high fives. The buoy she had just shot was sailing through the air on fire. Vista lined up in that curved back, hand supported position, and let fly with her Operator sized rifle again. Another buoy took flight. Battery smiled "Got it now."

The press was another four hundred meters back watching with long lenses. Babbling into microphones, and sometimes cheering. As when Vista launched one of the buoys and Operator hit it twice in the air.

Titanfall

Tattletale sat down at the table with Rune and Shadow Stalker. Hellhound, the guards and Drill Instructors wouldn't call her Bitch. Even though she corrected them and took the pushups or up downs she got in punishment every time, followed her with a couple of dogs. Rune grinned at them. "Tattletale, Bitch, Dogs. How can me and my cellie help you?"

Tattletale snorted "Totally breaking the mold huh? Good for you. So your nemesis beat the fuck out of the Merchants, Stalker. Once her legs and arms work and she gets over the withdrawal we will probably get Squealer in here. The other two are idiots and will try some bullshit. The prosecutors will crank up on them. They will be lucky to avoid the Birdcage. Odds on bet they get dropped in a containment zone. Like Gary."

Shadow Stalker nodded "That automatic weapons fire we heard. Thought she might be out running around. How long until she kills somebody and ends up in here?"

Tattletale laughed "Panacea runs with her. Plus some of that crashing and banging was eleven more Titans showing up." She grinned at Shadow Stalker.

Rune whistled "Fuck Stalker. Miss Piggy will be on the prod again."

"Rude."

"Sorry Bitch. You are going to have to be on your best behavior for a while cellie. Piggot will take it out on you somehow."

Tattletale looked at the odd couple and grinned from ear to ear. Shadow Stalker glared at her "Not one fucking word."


	16. Chapter 16

Titanfall Sixteen

Danny looked at Taylor over the dinner table. She arched a brow. He smiled ruefully. "So, Amy and Vista are shooty things too, I hear."

"No questions about BT's motivations?"

Danny turned to the Clark Bot in the apron. "No. Where did you get that apron? As for you, I completely agree with BT's motivations. People who would mess with teenage girls should be dissuaded. With as much force as is required. As for his actions in protecting you, that force should include fire and electrocution. Until they are dead. Then we can stick them on pikes in the front yard. I will have to talk to Amy about letting a few die."

"Traditionally, impalement as a punishment was done while the subject was alive."

"BT! Dad don't encourage him. I can take care of myself. Amy will be able to soon. You should see her out of that pilots outfit. She is in great shape suddenly. Her augments are working overtime." She looked up at the silence and face palmed at her dad waggling his eyebrows like a crazy person. And the Clark Bot giving her a thumbs up to go with his cheeky smirk. "Oh, my, god!" Thankfully the morning exercise crew arrived and saved her.

Amy looked at Taylor when she arrived at school. They had been talking in their titans on the way to school. Or after they had both mounted up to avoid their families. "I know right? They will get over it eventually. Meanwhile, what are we doing?"

Taylor sighed "Going out Friday night? Just to test the idea. A movie?"

Amy grinned "Sure." Her arm shot out to the side and her finger landed perfectly on Vicky's lips, silencing her and making her try to look at the finger going cross eyed in the attempt. "Take the Combi?"

Taylor snorted "Your face will stick like that Vicky. So you are done riding your titan if we go more than ten feet?"

Vicky huffed "BT, when are you going to be ready to download all my classes to me."

The ball hovering over Taylors shoulder, invisible, replied "When you agree to still attend your courses." There wasn't much sense in trying to bluff Vicky. She had run into the drone hovering invisibly in Amy's room when she flew in this morning. He had since adjusted his altitude for hovering to include her height from the floor. She hardly ever just walked. After that she had spent time zipping around the house looking for her drone. BT had to inform her hers wouldn't join her until she left Amy's vicinity and that it was running a patrol above the house right now. Her weapon drone. Her cell phone drone worked just fine.

Vicky waved him off "What? Oh sure. What do you need, verbal agreement? A signed contract?"

BT sighed "I will prepare the courses. As a base to Amanda and Lucy's downloads I think. Let's say first through tenth grade."

"Eleventh too! Get me a head start on next year. I can make honor roll and Mom will get me my Mustang!"

Taylor chuckled "In red. Well I guess that is a motivation. Though you do fly?"

"But I am going to look so hot in a red convertible Mustang GT500! I've got the perfect outfit!"

Amy shook her head "Mods for you, and you need to get your field to make the car indestructible."

"Hey! I'm not that bad!"

"I had to adjust Coach Thompson after your driver's ed lessons."

Dean walked up to Taylor looking at the arguing sisters. He sighed. Taylor chuckled. The other Wards showed up, minus Missy, who had a pair of glasses with a HUD in them so she wasn't missing anything watching through the drones, Taylor, and Amy's HUDs. And the Legion Titan squatting on a load bearing wall near the roof fully stealthed. Dennis was hiding behind Carlos, or trying to.

A few minutes later Amy squawked when Taylor took her hand and drug her off to wood shop "Oh, hi everyone, bye everyone! Taylor! Not so hard!"

Dennis looked up and started at the ice blue eyes and sardonic grin on Vicky. His mouth snapped closed on its own.

Chris chuckled "Trained response, like Pavlov's dogs."

Carlos nodded then asked "So what is with the dancing?"

Vicky blinked then the light dawned on her "Oh! BT has a routine worked out for Taylor and picks music to go with it. Lots of routines. They are all the martial arts combined sort of. A bit of this some of that. It has to have a pretty strong, fast beat. So dance or club music? Some hard rock. He has Amy starting one. He can run her for it. He only does that for the first couple of iterations though. Then she does it. Taylor and Amy spar now. With gloves and training weapons. They shoot these sponge balls the size of a paintball that leave paint marks. Well the guns. The knives leave a line of the paint. It washed off in the shower." She looked at Dennis again. He sighed. Everyone else laughed. "Good boy. Taylor spars with multiple Clark Bots, with the weapons on low power settings. Now, come on Dean, we have to talk."

"Oh no."

"What?" Vicky rolled her eyes "No, not like that. Amy and Taylor are…." The couple passed out of the others hearing. Dennis grinned "We can find out from Dean later."

Carlos nodded "Still cold for swimming. Iceburg season. She might drop you where you can land on one though."

Titanfall

Doctor Mother looked around the table "So we are going to continue to let a teenager dictate our path."

David shrugged "Path, I think we spend too much time worrying about paths. I feel better than I have in years."

The Number Man frowned "You might want to ease up a bit. Some of the more, loose with the law, organizations and individuals make us the most money."

Legend looked at him "Transition to a better way, and do it faster. If BT catches you he will follow the trail back to Cauldron. I guarantee you he will get a drone in here if he hasn't already. The things can be invisible for short periods and are really hard to spot unless he wants them to be spotted all the time. If he does, has, or if he decides she is ready he will find a way to bring Operator here. If that happens it is over."

Rebecca nodded "It's nearly miraculous that they haven't killed anyone. So close to miraculous it must be a plan. BT is outthinking us at every turn. Right now he is so many steps ahead that we are running full speed to catch up. With parahuman thinkers. I am trying to figure out why he hasn't just taken over the world."

Number Man shrugged "A lot of it he has. Most of the money in the world being controlled by very few people. It's even less people now. Significantly less. Double digit percentages less. By controlling the money he controls the influences in societies less corrupt and the corruption in the others."

Paul arched a brow, Number Man shrugged "Some societies are corrupt. At least by western, first world country, standards. Even Europe, where some level of quid pro quo is accepted, and expected. Gift giving to senior executives you are trying to do business with, that sort of thing. Most places don't have America's puritanical outlook on that sort of thing. It's the way they always have been. The normal way of doing business. Everyone expects it so it is completely transparent. BT uses that ruthlessly. The societies where corruption is anathema are doing better. They aren't completely his unknowing thralls yet. Still they are influenced by his, or rather Operators, voice. His philanthropy to their pet projects, His spending on politicians he likes, even in this short period, has already left its mark. Far outside of Brockton Bay."

Contessa spoke up "The Merchants acted differently to their path. It was out of the expected path and into a minor one. That then changed some of the others."

Rebecca snorted "So stupid even you couldn't model them? We are reaching new heights."

David shrugged "Lows, maybe."

Titanfall

Accord looked over the reports. Yes, helping Coil set up in South America and Africa had been the right call. Of course. Left to his own devices the fool would have done one or the other. This BT had plans within plans working. Coil was purely a criminal. He would be taken out. However the empire he built would then be Accord's and could be made to serve the greater plans. Without dirtying his own hands of course. Even being a savior of sorts for the people Coil was bound to abuse. Important now that the game had reached this level.

It was a bit galling that BT could implement parts and pieces of the plan he had conceived all those years ago, and have them succeed, it was meant to be a set piece. With modifications of course, but they were the same elements if you knew what you were looking at. It was either going to collapse the current system or greatly strengthen it. Under BTs control of course.

Still and all. Much more satisfying to play at this level. Well, hadn't IBM programmed a computer to beat chess masters? It was the infinite monkey paradigm. Unfortunately the perfectly programmed computer had landed near him. Nothing he couldn't plan around of course.

Citrine. That had been disappointing. Unexpected as well, coming from her. Did it matter if he was playing into BT's plan if he was accomplishing his objectives? In the end if he finished his objectives successfully he won, no matter what the other players did.

Titanfall

The Butcher looked at the news and shook her, his, their? Head. The Empire was gone, certainly. But a new power had risen. One that had crushed the Empire in an aside, as an impediment to it, like stepping on a bug. No, now was not the time to go back to Brockton Bay. Animos growled, He stopped when the Butcher turned to him. She sighed, obviously she was going to have to establish some discipline.

Titanfall

"It's done."

Uber nodded "It didn't catch on fire or break down or anything. That power supply from Big Rig and those capacitors are sweet."

Leet shrugged "He bought them or traded for them, I traded with him to get a set built to spec by the tinker he uses. Probably got about three months before it needs maintenance, for that they have to be removed, and shipped back to the tinker. They live in one of those pocket universe things of Toybox's. A recluse."

Uber frowned "Yeah, I couldn't do that. I need people."

"Aww, thanks man."

Uber looked at Leet, who spent ninety percent of his time in the 'lab' and nodded slowly. No sense aggravating him again. Things were looking up now that the Titan was finished. They could "So what theme are we running? I know, Titanfall, but that seems too obvious." Leet turned to his partner.

Uber sighed, or not "You know she called a full squad of Legions right?"

"Which just adds to the processing load for the AI she called up. How the Protectorate hasn't freaked about Skynet and shit is amazing. Lucky bitch. Anyway, it has to be getting close to saturation, with all those drones working all the time, and now more Titans." Leet nodded.

Uber frowned, "I'm not sure it works like that if they have processing and memory on board. What if they are like this one and remember the things they 'learn'? That latent memory acting like muscle memory is what made yours so fast."

"Ours, and the tinked linear motors. Fuck that silver for current transmission is expensive. Thousand bucks. Of course that was seventy pounds of it."

"Hard to believe some materials tinker hasn't come up with a better electrical conductor." Uber nodded. Hopefully the distraction would stick. He got his controller and pressed the logo anyway, always best to have a backup plan.

"Only one I know of is Bakuda. Bitch is cray cray like Forks PA. Can't even talk to her man. It's all 'and then boom!' all the time."

Uber grinned, that had been a useful distraction, dangerous, nothing like fighting a for real Titan would be though. "Or boom then there is what you want. Her thing is energetic single use, not just single use."

"Nah, that's a hang up man. She is just a pyro. Plus you know, Lung."

Titanfall

Johnny Sang looked at the group in front of him and laughed "Fuck you. You go tell Lung he needs to 'save face' and kill Operator. I'm not helping one of you idiots get promoted to clan chief. You had all better hope I forget this shit when I am sober or a few of your soldiers are going to move up in the organization." He looked at the girl on the pole. One of the better ones. The young ones were gone. Spirited away. Whole farms of them. The ones that were left actually liked the work. Which made them better at it. If more than slightly acerbic. They knew they were good and an in demand commodity. Fucking bitches. Better than some of the clans though. They had lost everything. He had kept nine girls. Hey treat them right and your stable treated you right. Plus he ran an honest trade in drugs and his tables weren't rigged. Tough to rig a go table. Hahaha. Anything westerners didn't play you could find at Sang's bird cage. Along with anything they didn't drink. Drink, profits were down on the cheap crap, but that was more than compensated by people buying the expensive shit. Or expensive to them. Cristal cost him a hundred buck a bottle and them a grand. Table service. Ha! Like the bitches were going to fuck them for it for free. He would super glue them shut if they did. Motherfuckers were stupid. Meh. As long as he made his take for Lung and enough to keep Shichi quiet it was all good. Girl ran the stable like a machine, but damn she was a shrill bitch. Plus, how much underwear could a stripper need?

Titanfall

Thebeardedone looked at his comefundme. It was a trickle now compared to the flood it had been. Chas had started a counter movement. Well not counter. Competitive maybe. Now he had just guys. She was getting all the girls. Which got her some guys. He was down to like twenty seven followers. She was turning it into some kind of movement about women. Fuck women! Hehehe, boy wouldn't, wait no. That was it! He needed to be inclusive! It was all the same thing! Someone taking away rights! Give me liberty! And a NatDad!

Craig cracked his knuckles and started typing, what was it the instructional videos on Youtube had said, just type, then go back and edit. Then find some clips, no more than thirty seconds if they had good action, five seconds for a still because people's attention span was like a squirrels. That's how the news streams did it. The successful ones. Oh fact checking to make sure your points had been said somewhere or you were fake news. Ha! He had thought they meant checking to see if it was really facts backed up by hard science. Hard science. Listen to him. He sounded like a college guy. Well, he had been making it to class and remembering more lately.

Titanfall

'Break me down'

"Oh fuck no!"

"Amy!"

"I'm not listening to fucking Buck Cherry at ugodly thirty in the morning while watching you do some crazy crap and beating the hell out of me."

"I'm sorry." Pop pop "Goddamnit! Why do I always fall for your bullshit! Play it loud BT! We'll see who gets the last laugh now!"

'Hey! You're a crazy bitch but you-' "Squeee!" pop "Ow! Right in the boob!"

"Shield Crystal!" Splat splat. "Watch where you are shooting" splat splat "Amy! OK fine! Charge!"

"Oh hell no, Leave me out of this. I have class and I already washed my hair. Oof. How did you get that past my shield? Damn it Taylor!

Danny laughed out loud holding the razor out from his face. "BT?"

"Yes Danny."

"It is a little early for that isn't it?"

"I found it interesting."

"As a distraction for Taylor using Amy? Schemes within plans, within wheels, my friend. A regular Machiavelli. Try to make sure the drone gets all the marks this time. Jorgen's is still giving me the evil eye about having 'wash me' written on his car in purply pink paint."

"Fuchsia would be closest to Amy's marker color. Amy has improved greatly. To be fair, I did have drones wash and service his car while he was discussing it with you. It was cleaner when he drove to work than it was when he parked it the night before. Mechanically safer as well."

Danny nodded "Discussing, okay, let's go with that. Part of it might have been the Clark Bot holding it up while the others did the service."

"It was perfectly safe. I have studied both the manufacturers servicing instructions and the relevant OSHA safety regulations. The 'Clark Bots' have much more lift capacity than the weight of a Honda of America Civic. I do understand now why they are the most stolen car in America. Well no, I don't, I understand how. Why anyone would want one is what I am having trouble understanding. However I gained much insight into the competition."

Danny's hand froze halfway through the stroke he was shaving "Competition?"

"Yes, Operator Motors has decided to market the Combi since it has passed the National Transportation Safety Board's test with a five star rating in all categories."

"And the Marine Corps testing for an amphibious assault infantry transport."

"As well as the Army's testing for an Infantry fighting vehicle, and the Air Force test for a base defense vehicle."

"And space defense platform."

"Naturally."

"I see. And for breakfast this morning?"

"Taylor's dietary requirements, along with the Advocates are most easily satisfied with the continental style breakfast. I am preparing it now."

"Hmmm." Danny ran a wash cloth under the hot water and wiped off the remnants of his shaving cream. "What are you going to call Amy if they get serious?"

"The Advocate Mrs. Operator."

The after shave slap completely missed Danny's face, or the area he had shaved. He manfully did not scream, as he put his head under the cold water and held his pleasantly scented eye open to flush it. "Thanks BT, a real eye opener there."

"You're welcome Danny. I enjoy our morning humor. We ran out of Space Odyssey material however."

"Maybe apply some of those OSHA recommendations. This stings a bit."


	17. Chapter 17

Titanfall Seventeen

Danny looked up at the sound of high velocity, large caliber gunshots. Barbara, the administrator, bustled in smiling. "That doesn't bother you?" Danny asked.

Barbara laughed "The sound of freedom? No, not so much."

"We'll see how long 'the sound of freedom' doesn't bother people."

"If it does, well, they didn't live in the Bay, or the Docks rather. So do they matter really?"

Danny blinked. Then he frowned "So the alcohol thing…."

"Better for all of us really. Brown bottle flu is down sixty percent."

Danny took the report she was waving "So Monday absenteeism is down. Got to find more jobs then."

"Friday as well. And not really. Operator Tech, industries, whatever it is, is hiring everyone we send. I heard they were starting a car plant. I wonder how I get on the waiting list for a Combi?"

Danny eyed the drone hovering in the corner of his office "Oh, I suspect you already are. Most of the union probably is."

Barbara blanched "Holy crap! Got to check my bank account!" Danny chuckled as she rushed back to her office, and computer.

Titanfall

Taylor watched the last of the buoys evaporate in a cloud of plasma "Got to get some more targets."

Vista grinned sitting behind the tripod mounted plasma cannon, flipped the switch to safe, before she got up, and dusted off her butt. "Check this out! Armsmaster and Dragon made it for me!" She drew her pistol and flipped the cylinder open ejecting the five huge rounds of ammunition into her other palm.

Taylor took the pistol being held out to her and checked it was empty and safe. "Metal feels odd."

"Some kind of imitation of one of BT's metals they are working on with him. It's a fifty caliber five shot revolver. Like yours! They made non-lethal loads for it, plus once I qualify with them, and in certain circumstances, they have more than lethal loads. Something about RDX, armor penetration being a function of cone diameter in homogenous armor matrixes, and all sorts of stuff. It goes boom!" She grinned at Taylor.

Taylor nodded "Got some ammunition?"

Missy held open the lid of a pouch on her side with her hip tilted toward Taylor "High pressure foam, lots of containment foam in these, something about liquids not being compressible but BT doing it anyway that drives Armsmaster nuts, rubber buckshot, again compressed somehow, a cubic foot of thirty caliber shot, and foam batons that act like they aren't foam until they hit." Missy explained. Taylor took one of each and the two started a conversation.

Amy rolled her eyes. Vicky smirked "Missy is putting the moves on your girlfriend."

"My girlfriend is fine, and Vista is a bit young." Amy looked at the now hugely grinning Vicky and closed her eyes. "Oh, my, god! Will you stop? You won't will you. If I go over there and make out with her will that stop you?"

Crystal landed "Nah, we will bug you to see what base you got to after your date." She looked at Amy's face and shrugged "Can't chose family."

"I hate you both so much." All three of them snapped around when the five shots rang out. The clangs of the projectiles hitting the metal e type silhouette leaving deep dents in the inch thick ship plating it was cut from made them blink. "That's non-lethal?"

Missy nodded "Brute rounds."

Vicky winced "You know five of them in a second like that would probably get through my type shields." Missy grinned maliciously. "Hey!" Vicky pouted.

Taylor was frowning "Double action, rises right. That group must be a couple inches. What do you have to do to qualify? We can do some training. We can port this barrel too. Stop that rise, or slow it down"

Amy laughed at Vicky pouting "Lost them. So, what are you planning for my date and how embarrassing is it going to get?"

Crystal answered "Dragging Dean around and making him tell her what your emotional state is every four seconds. Giving Taylor the shovel talk if it looks like things are going too well."

"Hey!" Vicky glared at Crystal.

"You won't be doing that. At least not now that I know about it. I can see I will have to threaten Dean."

"Not like threats work on GG."

"I'm right here!" Amy turned to Vicky and she flinched "OK, fine. I am coming and bringing Dean though. BT may have his army to deal with idiots but that lacks a certain personal touch." She smacked one fist into the other palm.

Crystal chuckled "Yeah, having a legion titan plasma barbeque you is very impersonal. So what about the latest outfits the sites have Taylor in? I mean after they heard about the date they took off and stripped her naked then put up suggestions from underwear out."

Vicky nodded like a bobble head "The argument over how far up she should shave got the ban nukes flying."

"Wut?" Amy asked. Vicky got out her phone as did Crystal. Amy blinked "That isn't Taylor. That's her face stuck on some mostly nude model with approximately the same measurements. Maybe a mannequin. It doesn't have nipples, or pubic hair."

Vicky nodded "Duh, they aren't totally stupid, she is under age. And you know about hair how? Oh, duh, never mind. You at least know she has hair follicles in the right places. Check out these panty and bra sets though, this one is great, cost five hundred bucks and you have to go to the shop in London to get fitted. Don't know how they think she can do that by tomorrow." Amy's mouth was opening and closing but no sound was coming out.

BT replied "I can easily make that."

Amy blinked and pointed out another set wordlessly while blushing furiously. Crystal nodded "I like that one too, especially with this skirt and blouse. These shoes though."

Vicky looked at Crystals screen "Nice, this bag. No for Amy. It wouldn't match those shoes at all. Amy has some peep toe pumps that will work though. Wedge canvass ones. Here let me..."

"Eeeep! That's not me!" Another mannequin appeared on the screen of Vicky's phone naked and was dressed a layer at a time. What the fuck Vicky? You have my entire wardrobe, and some of your stuff on here! Is this an app?

"Yeah, amazing how close they are on the estimates though, your bacteria are working overtime. Might need to slow them down, pretty noticeable something happened. Driving PHO crazy trying to figure out if you suddenly can fix yourself. Well that, and that perfect heart shaped ass. The insta ban booty, talk about it and get nuked. Did the critters do that or were your genes already going to make that? You can, fix yourself, but not like they think. More ban nukes as they got a little carried away talking about body image and how you being able to make yourself fit yours was so dangerous. Like a bunch of fat guys sitting in their moms basements typing on the internet would know anything about girl's body issues."

"I am not getting a Brazilian!"

Taylor looked over Amy's shoulder "Yeah, no little girl look, thanks."

"Eeeep!"

"Not a problem for me." Missy said proudly.

Taylor gave her a one armed hug "Maybe TMI though?" Amy glared at her with Vicky's phone pressed to her chest.

A few meters away Miss Militia looked at Battery and sighed. Battery laughed "So I don't know if I want girls anymore."

Purity nodded "Already dreading it. Not like you get a choice though. It's the guys who pick the sex."

Miss Militia nodded "That's what they say, give them a few minutes then we can move on. Looks like range time is over."

Battery pointed at the Clark Bots trotting up "Until the targets get reset, are those robot people they are carrying?"

Purity shook her head "Surely that will desensitize them to violence?"

"Living in Brockton Bay probably already did that." Battery replied.

Miss Militia nodded "If not, being parahumans did. I wonder if those move and how good at dodging they are."

A few hundred meters away Danny looked out the window. Mark Hausen walked in "Sounds like heartbreak ridge. Easy gap range complex maybe, those are pretty heavy weapons. I looked through the binos, they got a tactical range set up with target robots. Robots that do hand to hand if you let them get close. Nice system too, kind of like the LINE system only less nice."

Danny nodded "Didn't the Corps change systems because that one only had killing finishes? BT was going to take the training up a notch. All part of his plan."

"Tough realistic training is the goal. I bet he could sell those drones to the military."

"I'll mention it to him." The drone in the corner rolled up and down.

Mark snorted "No need. How many people see that drone?"

"So far you and Tyrone."

"I'll have to do something about people's situational awareness. You would think surviving the Bay would train them better. Although if it hadn't moved I might have missed it, the color went out of synch with the wall behind it for a split second."

The Drone rolled up and down again "Noted, thank you Gunnery Sergeant."

"Gunny is fine. I got some contacts in the Corps still. Marines I trained making Sergeant Major even. It's terrifying. Tyrone has the same thing with guys he trained in the Army. Call him Top, irritates the piss out of him, First Shirt if you are in a position with good escape routes." Danny sighed. Tyrone had retired as a Team Sergeant, Master Sergeant.

Titanfall

"I'm not wearing that."

"It was the most popular choice on the site."

"Yeah because those girls don't have to wear it BT. That lace is like a grater. Those parts of me don't need grating. Plus these straps are plastic, clear plastic. Have you ever worn plastic? I'll sweat like a pig. Plus the holes in this lace are big and the threads are thin. I don't want anything cut off."

Danny chuckled at the ongoing discussion as Taylor got ready for her date, she was of the white cotton comfort school.

Lacey walked in and flopped onto the couch. "It isn't funny, Taylor has no idea how to girl." She narrowed her eyes at Danny's grin. "It is important you know. She is a girl."

Danny shrugged "With a twenty five feet tall, forty ton dog. Plus his pack. She can take her own time and way to figure it out. I bet she can girl like a diva when she wants too."

Lacey sighed and leaned back "Could be. It could also be Amy teaches her."

Danny smiled some more "Which will be fine, in thirty or forty years."

Lacey snorted "Keep dreaming Danny boy."

Titanfall

Lisa blinked at the people in the room "OK, so, how can I help?"

Director Piggot and Armsmaster turned to her, Chief Director Costa Brown, Legend, Dragon and a few others looked out of the monitors they were teleconferenced into. Director Piggot replied "We want your estimate, you have read all the data we have."

Lisa grinned "I have. You have a problem, not just a creditable threat but several. Two of these groups at least will strike during the date. This one," She held up a folder "Is, well, not a problem. The Wards can handle them. These, they were associates of the first group that realized they actually had a brain. Led by women, young women. More of a threat if something goes wrong, you might let BT handle them. This non-lethal stuff of his is pretty amazing. Or you know, fifteen thousand volts no amps. At least in a perfect world.

"Unfortunately for us this last one is the real problem. Leet feels threatened. He has had time and has built a sort of titan. It takes both him and Uber to run it and Uber is not really willing. BT has pushed Leet over the edge though. He thinks its Operator making all of this stuff and trying to take his tinker title."

Armsmaster blinked "What Tinker title? The worst?"

Lisa waggled a finger "Be nice Armsmaster. The tinker that can make anything."

Dragon nodded "Not only that, his tech is reproducible. If he had decent materials consistently he could be great. Tinker seven as it is now."

Lisa nodded "And last but never least, Lung. He wants to talk to Operator. Amy has talked to her. Taylor Hebert's father got a vehicle from her, or BT."

Director Costa Brown leaned forward "He has never acted this rashly in the past."

"Fighting Leviathan and sinking Kyushu? Hmmm, ok, maybe. But he just wants to talk. Unfortunately he is limited in Parahuman help and may send either Oni Lee or Bakuda to relay the invitation to talk. Oni Lee would do just that. Bakuda would, who knows. She is unstable and unpredictable, with a mercurial temper. Other than that, he is going to show up. That would be the best thing that could happen. Operator can handle herself and Panacea could drop him as soon as she made contact with him."

Director Piggot looked at Lisa sharply. Lisa flinched, realizing what she had just said. Director Piggot nodded "That backs up what the other analyst have said. Now what do you think of our plans?"

"The Wards have the basement dwellers. Do they even have a name? The local Protectorate and PRT are on Lung watch and you are going to handle the splinter group, or really the main group of anarchist, personally, with PRT and BBPD back up.

"They already tried to capture a Clark Bot. Back when they were with the basement dwellers. Something went wrong, their trap failed, somebody died. An accident really. Legally their fault, well the persons fault for sure. He was in the wrong place, where he had been specifically told not to be. When the snow melts up there you need to search again. Rachel, erh sorry, Bitch, uh Hellhound, says dogs might find the body now."

Emily pinched the bridge of her nose and looked at her Deputy for Operations, the Director of the correctional facility "That's a homicide in conjunction with the commission of a felony. The prosecutor will have a field day. Her and her dogs."

The Deputy nodded "With Gully and a couple of her team, plus a strike team. We don't want anything going wrong on the first outing. I'll have the Liaison coordinate with the LEOs." She looked at Lisa and drummed her fingers. "Not you. Hellhound doesn't need a translator. You can watch the body cam footage later and see if we missed anything. Rune. Shadow Stalker is still not ready. Rune understands cooperate and graduate."

Lisa nodded "Resistance is futile."

Dragon chuckled "You just can't help yourself can you Tattletale."

"Meh, teenage girl. Speaking of which chances are your nightmares are true. Taylor and Amy are one and done, probably. At least for the foreseeable future. Operator can call an orbital projectile as well. She has, twelve times so far. The next one doesn't have to have antigrav and retro thrusters. That's why the Simurgh hasn't gone dormant, she is watching for the projectile in orbit."

Armsmaster nodded "At orbital velocities a small projectile could do serious damage."

"And a four hundred and forty ton iridium spear could end her." Lisa added, smirking.

Dragon wiped the smirk of her face "Making us ground zero in a cosmic scale detonation."

Titanfall

Vicky looked around alertly. Amy leaned into Taylor "Going to have to thank whoever these idiots are. They have the Protectorate fired up, Vicky actually working, and the Wards busy, so we get to have an actual date."

Taylor laughed "Albeit with a chaperone." She looked at Vicky.

"Sorry, they never let me out of sight if they can help it. Too many idiots and too many kidnapping attempts."

"I'm just impressed she can handle the crowds and divert so much attention. Only the girls our age are watching us like hawks."

"Hawks with cell phone cameras. This is going on the net you know."

"Yeah I got that. The Operator Panacea shippers are losing their minds. I'm apparently the perfect stand in. Besides the face of course. I apparently should have spent more time on my makeup and used a slightly heavier foundation as I have at least nine freckles showing."

Amy laughed and put down her piece of sushi "You aren't even wearing makeup."

"Which is apparently going to have to change as I don't look like a gel coated mannequin at all. I have, gasp, flaws even!"

"Fuck them. Now get off the net and pay attention to me."

"Yes Ma'am! You too."

Amy blushed, she had been perusing a few stories in the shipper fic section of PHO. Just the first paragraph or so. The sameness was a bit boring but you could get a feel of how it was going to go on most of them.

Titanfall

Missy looked at Thebeardedone. She snorted and pulled the trigger five times. The figures in the black hoodies and mask the Wards had corralled on the boardwalk disappeared in a block of containment foam. Chuckling PRT troopers and cops moved in. Missy reloaded and holstered her pistol. "Come on let's finish this so Dean can catch up and distract Vicky. Taylor and Amy will appreciate the alone time."

"I'm the distraction?"

"You or Dennis."

"Not me dude. I checked, it is iceberg season, but there are none on the Coastguard site or the notices to mariners between here and the Grand Banks. Too cold for swimming."

Chris blinked at Dennis's newfound interest in all things nautical and looked at Missy "Aren't you an Opacea shipper?" Missy just looked at him. "Oh, right, sorry. Taylor is just so, Taylor."

"Right up until you piss her off" Dennis shuddered. Carlos sighed.

Titanfall

Emily Piggot, in field service fatigues, LCE and PPE, faceplate and all, looked at Chas "The last movement like this, the leader ended up in the Birdcage. The woman you are so concerned about being used by the male establishment to abuse the poor and disenfranchised is on a date with one of Lustrum's chief enforcer's daughter. I think the best thing for you all to do is pack it in before this turns violent and I throw you all in jail. Or the Birdcage if anyone gets killed and you are a parahuman. That would be two women's rights advocates in the cage. Nobody wants that. We are going to need to talk to you about that attempt on a Clark Bot, there were some complications that lead to a death we are being told, so don't run. Stay available."

Chas's sign had slowly descended to the ground "Ted."

"Beg Pardon? Emily asked somewhat sharply. The whole story poured out of 'Chas' and her core group members, even after the Miranda warning. Including a scathing diatribe on Jersey's habit of going braless, which was apparently a former habit now. Emily scowled at the part about the Snitch. That put this in her jurisdiction, as if the Clark Bot didn't already. The Snitch was the precipitating factor in the chain of misfortune that led to Ted Sarkrites death. They had found his mostly stripped bones scattered over a square mile. Those dogs were amazing apparently. So was Bitch, Hellhound. She wanted to pinch the bridge of her nose but she was public facing. Which didn't stop her detail from wincing at parts of the story they knew were going to generate problems for them. Emily subvocalized some orders to Armsmaster and Operations.

Titanfall

Sergeant Johnson of the BBPD looked at the protestors. All surrounded by a cordon of police, kind of a sad crowd really. "You are trespassing on private property, you will disperse and leave or be arrested for trespass."

"We're on the sidewalk! Not in the road! You can't arrest us!" The bearded perp turned around and got another sad chant going. Sergeant Johnson shrugged and looked at the officers, who had been taking verbal abuse from these idiots for an hour. The idiots apparently didn't realize anything inside the Hospital grounds was private property. Nice try on knowing they couldn't be on the street though, more points if they knew they couldn't impeded the flow of pedestrians as well. Oh well, those jail guys needed some entertainment. He keyed his radio "Sergeant on site, hook them up for trespass. Watch for runners." He reached out and grabbed the skinny one nearest him, he at least looked clean. That one's beard had a Micky D's fry or something in it. Hopefully it was a fry.

As they were finishing he answered a radio call and this suddenly got a lot more serious "Chambers, Mirandize that one again, Jimmy whatever his name is, he is going for facilitation of negligent homicide. That body Hellhound and her dogs found, apparently this guy sent them all out there to get him a Clark Bot. Or he is the underboss of the idiot that sent them. The prosecutor can sort it out."

"Jesus, what the fuck for, I heard you can pay for their time, cheap, like fifty bucks an hour. It cost more to rent a skid steer."

"That's for the prosecutor to figure out Chambers, just hook him up. Body camera on."

Titanfall

Kenta walked up to the pair of girls "I wish to speak to Operator."

Amy sighed "-"

Taylor cut her off "Where and when?"

Miss Militia watched the letter be handed over and Kenta bow slightly before walking away. Taylor took the letter back from Amy and put it in a pocket. Purity dropped the binoculars from her eyes as the girls walked off chattering, smiling and making lion claw hands. At least Taylor, which made Amy laugh and Taylor smile "Anticlimactic."

"Which is good with Lung."

"You, we, have known who he was this whole time."

"He balanced your former associates nicely. The trafficking was going to have me try putting a bullet in him soon. Armsmaster and Dragon have developed several." Miss Militia shrugged.

Purity looked at her "Then someone magically stopped that."

"Funny how things work out."

"I need a shower."

The Dragon combat remote landed and lowered a troop ramp. Dragon's voice came from its speakers "It isn't all clean and tidy."

Titanfall

Uber winced as the speakers, even the flat thin surfaces in the titan started playing guitar music and a voice wailed. When it sang 'We walk alone' he looked at Leet "Dude we are going to die." Ten Legion Titans appeared from nowhere, surrounding them and their Titan in the middle of the square. It was wide open, though weedy, and somewhat trash strewn, just down the street from the theater showing the Narnia movies constantly, since 2005. They just adjusted the schedule when a new one came out. They even showed the animated ones. All Narnia all the time. What else could you expect from the Magic Lion Theater?

BT appeared with a glowing fifteen foot sword and Leet raised the giant pistol. It hit the ground in two pieces, followed by piece after piece of the suit. Uber was amazed by the volume of the screaming. His and Leets.

Armsmaster looked down at the two after BT and the real Titans had disappeared. The 'titan' they had been in no longer had an assembled piece bigger than a human torso "Parahumans Uber and Leet, you are under arrest, you have the right to remain silent-" Uber had never been so happy to be arrested in his life. It had been spectacular though, showers of sparks flying, red hot metal spraying. All that screaming. Even a chest emitter blast or two. The video would go viral immediately. Good thing he had ignored Leet and live streamed it. To bad Leet wet his pants at the end. Really , pretty understandable getting your head shaved into that fake scalping with a monomolecular blade like that. Trolls though, they would be a problem. Ah well, the system would DDOS them on auto until it was shut down.

Titanfall

Vicky looked at Betty, BTs human form drone "They escaped."

"They are in the overlook on Captains Hill."

"Make out central? In CB? Those seats fully recline don't they. Are you blushing? You are! Spill! Oh! Someone will see!" Dean rolled his eyes and towed Vicky, who was floating again, along to the ice cream parlor.

Betty shrugged "The Combi is in stealth mode and parked at the far left side where it is unlikely to be encountered. It went to stealth mode as it turned right onto Lordsport Avenue and lost all of the pursuers."

"Oh! The deep makeout spot! Nice. You remember that Dean?" Now Dean was blushing.


	18. Chapter 18

Titanfall 18

Danny looked at Taylor in the morning "Nice. I can still pretend." Taylor blushed furiously and glared at him. "Damn, now you've ruined it. Do I need to get dad's white shotgun out?"

"Dad! Amy will be out of the shower in a minute!"

"So, I figured I'd get my licks in now." Danny grinned. Taylor smirked and obviously had an internal debate. Danny paled "Uh, bad choice of words. As long as you are happy Taylor, well, happy, healthy, safe, have good opportunities and…." He trailed off.

Taylor got up and came over and hugged him before sitting down again as Amy led the pack of girls in the kitchen. Vicky looking disgruntled and Crystal laughing. The geniuses were grinning. Danny reached for the life preserver this offered. "Not kissing and telling, nice."

Vicky snorted "That only applies to boys! Not sisters! I tell her everything!"

Amy nodded "Despite me using earplugs trying not to hear it. Oh a switch to turn my hearing off." She got out her tablet and started tapping away. The others laughed at Vicky pouting.

Lucy looked up from her tablet half way through breakfast "The Opaceas have gone mad. They can't decide whether Amy is cheating on Operator or just using Taylor as a stand in."

"Fuck, my life. Why do I have to get blamed?" Amy asked.

Amanda shrugged "Taylor is Taylor Amy, the new girl, the hot new girl, you swooped in on her before anyone else had a chance. You have to expect some backlash."

Taylor frowned "Uh, I think I get a say."

Crystal nodded "The Say I would think. You are going to have to be more forceful about it Taylor. That is if this is really a thing. Some people are going to be idiots though, no matter what."

Taylor nodded "Greg Veder."

Danny perked up "Speaking of which he got out of M/S screening. There was some question he wasn't a parahuman. He had to have a scan. Turns out he doesn't have the thing."

"So he is just so socially inept as to be handicapped." Taylor arched a brow.

Crystal nodded "Like that, good. Nice and snarky."

Danny laughed "Some children are like that. He may grow out of it. Now what about all this stuff last night?"

The Clark Bot serving spoke up "The PRT has control of all of the alleged perpetrators. As some people have said before, they appear to be going 'wide fucking open' on them. Trying to deter future misbehavior I think. Plus the Director is very active now. It is much more interesting working with her."

Danny nodded "Or around her. Two things, first the meeting with Lung? And then an interesting little snippet in international news. All of the Dragon Slayers were found dead? In a warehouse near Quebec, an abandoned freight transfer facility?"

Amy answered one part "Meh, I'll meet with him. See what he wants. If he acts up I'll drop him and collect the reward money. Sommers Rock is 'neutral ground' and where he wants to meet. I think he wants to meet Operator but this is his prelude so we will see. Our PRT watchers had to have seen the invitation passed. It's pretty neat. An e-maki sort of. I'll have to give them a copy. Which reminds me, what was up with you taking it from him Taylor?"

"You were hesitating and I didn't want him to have an excuse." Taylor shrugged. "Hate to have to go all Become One on his scaly butt. Or shoot him in the face a bunch of times."

Danny frowned "No telling how he will take that. You taking the invitation Taylor. Complicated guy who likes to portray himself as a simple gangster."

Lucy shrugged "We can ask Sally. She gets those from her dad. Pisses her off."

Everyone at the table turned to her. Danny sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose "Ok, more on that later, you two are going to get in serious trouble one day if what this is what I think it is."

Amanda chuckled "Not sweating to the BT beats for fun, or because we are masochist."

Danny shook his head "And the Dragon Slayers?"

"A group that had many enemies, suspected war criminals even." The Clark Bot offered.

Danny looked at Taylor who was smearing a piece of toast with no sugar added raspberry preserves. The others at the table looked between father and daughter. Taylor finally shrugged "Many, many, enemies."

"So Frank needs to know then. Maybe your uncle Joseph."

Taylor chuckled "Who is really my 'uncle' in the made man kind of a way."

"We're French not Italian. Don't make me break out the lasagna recipe for a dinner party."

"Oh lasagna! Its amazing Amy, I'll make it!"

"I'll get the ingredients while you are practicing Taylor."

"And now feeding her family recipes, oo la la" Vicky grinned.

Lucy face palmed "The shippers will go mad, madder." Amy glared at them both.

Danny sighed. He would never get to it now. He would need to get Taylor alone. Or did he really? Maybe a conversation with BT was in order first. This was, after all, his doing.

Titanfall

Dragon looked around the freight depot. The crime scene teams from the police and the PRT had come and gone. Armsmaster had finished with a near microscopic examination of the building and grounds. "So an entire server farm removed and nine people executed. My stolen equipment left here."

Armsmaster nodded "Not so much a server farm as a tinker super computer, tinker three perhaps, though it did have a lot of memory and functioned somewhat like a server. Which is the puzzling part. Your equipment being left I mean. Even bastardized by Saint it has obvious value. No notice to the PRT or police aside from that indigent calling in. From the warehouse phone. He was looking for a warm place out of the weather, he says. The door was apparently unlocked." Dragon had her remote nod.

Meanwhile in cyber space her avatar, the electronic one, was glaring at BT's electronic avatar "You killed them!"

"Even if I did, not saying I did, I don't have a prohibition against killing. They were a threat to my pilot. Indirectly, by being a threat to you, one of the forces of good. They would have had to be dealt with for that. Killing is actually what I do. Someone was going to kill them eventually, they were mercenaries. If they didn't know the risk they shouldn't have been in the business."

"One of them was an officer of the law."

"'Was' being the operative term."

"This isn't over!" She left the electronic space.

BT heard the snickering "How are you able to do that Amy?"

"What, listen in on trouble in paradise? I'm your doctor."

"What?"

Taylor shook her head listening to the two argue. She and Amy weren't the only people the neural transmitter had linked. It brought into question giving Missy what she wanted, a neural link of her own. She might have to get BT to download, and fence off a 'clean' clone of his programming to be her Legion if they did go that far. Of course it was Missy and her loyalties were a bit up in the air. Some more thought was obviously needed.

Meanwhile Lung might have to die. Depending on what he wanted. And how much he wanted it really. If he did Bakuda and Oni Lee would have to go too. She shrugged and kept on with her run through the course, she was getting to the higher quality drones, and the Legions would be next, they were fast and deadly, BT last, if she didn't get a kill mark before she got to him. She turned the music up with an eye movement and mouthed 'let the bodies hit the floor' as she tripped the ambush. She could think about that later, right now she needed to transition to the pistol as that knife was stuck in that drones 'ribs'. Fucking BT and his failure modes. He would look cute with a light blue smilely face on his freaking head.

Titanfall

Emily Piggot stared at the monitor "I think you would have trouble proving it, as no one has developed a shred of physical evidence. Nothing."

"Which I think is proof enough." The Boston Director, Armstrong, allowed.

Emily snorted "OK, you get a grand jury to buy a forty ton, twenty five foot tall Titan, or one of his equally immense friends, executed nine people and didn't leave a mark, make a sound, scorch something with plasma or break anything including the pavement while executing them with two precisely placed shots to the head each. Which appear to be twenty two caliber ice projectiles. Not an unknown technology, expensive to get from the hitters that have been known to do it, but not impossible. I think you need to talk to the FBI, their organized crime unit might have a better idea than us trying a charge on a parahuman who was on a date at the time, with multiple witnesses."

Legend cleared his throat "And the unaccounted for time?"

"Ha, you ask Panacea to get a statement about what she did parking with Operator. If she doesn't turn you to a puddle of goo, I will go with her answer. Anecdotally the time is not unaccounted for as the shippers page of PHO has video, that Dragon suppressed after about five seconds, according to a few of my troopers." Emily leaned back in her chair.

Dragon looked at her monitor and sighed "I asked him. He neither admits nor denies anything. Although he considered them an indirect threat to Operator.

"I had to suppress the video, it was taken with some very advanced technology and while no detail was discernable heat shadows were visible."

'Rebecca' Meredith, sighed "So, he would have gotten around to them eventually, however he probably wouldn't have gone to any length at all to hide it. He has not in the past."

The Los Angeles Director rubbed his chin "Substantial reward from parties in the former Yugoslavia and Georgia. Ukraine as well."

"Offshore bank, numbered transaction, from a numbered account to a numbered account. With Switzerland in the state it is in you will never get those records even if they exist. It's the only way they earn money walled off like they are. And done on paper." Dragon sighed.

Armsmaster leaned forward "I think it doesn't matter. A criminal organization has been taken out. The criminals will know it wasn't them, will suspect who it was, and will be hesitant about trying the new player on. As long as it stays confined to the criminal element, these purges occur." He concluded.

Everyone looked at the monitor square with Legend in it. He pinched the bridge of his nose "I will speak to Eidolon again."

A new player, one wearing a black mask like a Mexican wrestler chuckled "Exactly the point, or a part of the point Armsmaster. If it is never claimed, the act not the reward, then it is a masterful ploy. Even if she didn't do it, it will be attributed to her. If we try to charge Operator and cannot make it stick, well, she gets even more credit. All part of a bigger play to draw out the super heavy hitters. If our glowing Green friend leaves any.

"If they try her they had better come big. Really this backs up the play with the Simurgh and calling a, squad was it? Yes a full squad of the line troops of the Titan world. This hints at there being battalions, brigades, divisions, of them."

Emily shook her head "A thousand at most. According to estimates."

The Psyops thinker on loan from DoD chuckled "Estimates. Yes, well, the tin hat crowd on the forums disagree. Especially as they can simply be manufactured, and we have no way to stop that. They have gleefully pointed this out while quoting Isoroku Yamamoto"

"Fuck, my life. To quote Emily." Meredith covered her face with a hand for a moment. "Have we? Awoken a sleeping Giant?"

The thinker shrugged "Doubtful, he has a specific mission, become one. He is not resource constrained and has the high ground, literally and so far, morally. Don't interfere and assist where and when we can and reap the benefits of a wartime economy without the war. Or any more of the war than we are already in and really a vanishing war at that, at least here and possibly in Europe. Western Europe. I expect some parahumans in Europe will have troubles soon. Africa, hmmm. Not much there of use really, at least not at this point. South America, really from the Mexican border south, only exist as a hazard and resource collection, and should be careful. The Near east? Southwest Asia? Resources, as long as they leave him and Operator alone he won't kill them all with a directed orbital bombardment or direct fire. Or Have Operator call the Carrier that could do it and hold it here instead of it doing these drive by drops. There is some interest in prompting someone to irritate her to that point, but it has been judged to be counterproductive at this time.

"Panacea's little plagues should cure a lot of the trouble south of the border though. Drop the bottom right out of the drug cartels baskets. A wave of death squad's deaths will take care of that. Not an infinite supply of true believers to hurl at the problem. Merely a nearly infinite amount of money, or formerly nearly an infinite amount. My colleagues in the financial section are agog at his ability to acquire assets."

The Director from Dallas sat forward "So these bodies we are finding in the desert across the southwest?"

The thinker grinned so big you could see it under the mask "My direct action colleagues, and those in the Agencies not to be named, are amazed. All died of exposure and dehydration after vehicle breakdowns or water points mysteriously drying up while the teams were being pursued by Border Patrol agents. The ones that flew in were highlighted by the computers and picked up, not without a few casualties, but Border Patrol, and their LEO associates, are riding high on their success. And the agents are being sent to Brockton Bay for treatment by Panacea. At the agencies expense. If they survived at all, all but one has. That one received a marvelous funeral and still got his posthumous award, and his large family and three former or current wives their pensions, even though some questionable activity surfaced during the audit of his career after his death. It all appears as though the system finally started working as intended."

Armsmaster nodded "Because it did. Dragon and I have reviewed it. With the exception of the water holes drying up, and the southwest is in severe drought conditions, it is all what could be expected, was expected, of the system, all these years.

Armstrong drummed his fingers "There is no such thing as coincidence in law enforcement."

Armsmaster nodded "BT has removed all the impediments to the systems, as well as all the back doors, and clandestine accesses to the system of systems. He has also cleaned it up. It is secure and optimized. Several audits of the software have proven that, the hardware audit is still underway, however several departments have received donations of up to date hardware. The drought-"

Chicago barked "Ah ha!"

Armsmaster finished "Existed for five years before BT arrived. So before any possible trigger for Operator."

Emily chuckled darkly "Yes let's arrest the philanthropist for helping us. Welcome to Gotham Operator, hope you like Arkham."

Stunned silence reigned until Rebecca chuckled "The first time BT says 'I'm Batman' I'm quitting and recommending you as my replacement Emily."

"I will shoot somebody in the ass and go to the confinement center first."

Titanfall

"Something has them stirred up."

Rune grinned and waggled her eyebrows "Your alleged Nemesis giving Panacea the old tickle and poke."

"Wut? No, goddamn, where do you get this stuff and do you ever quit?"

"TV, still got my privileges."

"Fucking Jorgenson, How does a six two, two twenty, female, interior lineman, who is black, get named Jorgenson? Bitch got to be on steroids. Or Cristobal, fucking speak English bitch, and I will do what you say! Plus how is she white, with red hair, and blue eyes?" Shadow Stalker trailed off looking at Rune at the position of attention. "Fuck me."

"Not on your best day Prisoner. Pray continue, what are, say Staff Sergeant Lester's, problems?" DI Lester asked from directly behind Shadow Stalker.

"Uh, none Sergeant"

"Uh?"

Rune winced and stayed locked up as the gang smoking of Shadow Stalker got underway as two other DI's vectored in on the command voice. The latest gang smoking. She was the fittest female in the joint though. All those pushups, up downs, and mountain climbers. She was fucking ripped. The fucking twins had nothing on her and all they did was lift all day, well, when they were off. Rune hummed a little as a song entered her head "Break me down…."

Tattletale watched from across the quad and shook her head "Odd couple."

Bitch looked up and followed her partner's eyes "They should just fuck."

"Maybe. Don't know if it works that way for two females."

"Dogs do."

"Oh! Dominance, yeah maybe. Don't know if Rune is that invested." She chuckled at the grunt she got back. "So, you are pretty much just sleeping here."

"You too."

"Yep, see it works out. The lawyers got Grue off with time served and probation, Alex got a couple years and you are going to get compensation on top of your reduced sentence of six months and your business set up. Maybe a bunch of compensation. They got everything but that one reduced to self-defense. That one being negligent homicide was odd. I mean you did stop that just a little too late but you stopped it. The medics taking twenty to minutes to respond is what killed her. And that woman was the bait for her pedophile twin brother. "

"Good." Lisa smiled at the closest to thanks she would probably get.

Titanfall

Bakuda looked at Lung, a different Lung than had first intimidated her into his service after taking her from a jail cell. "We know it is Taylor Hebert." Lung nodded. "You gave the invitation for Panacea, or Operator really, to her." Lung nodded again. "My stuff might or might not effect a Titan and would certainly have trouble with a projectile like they used on Skidmark, beam, whatever that was. They didn't kill the Merchants." Alice was sweating a bit. She put the brain that got her into Cornell two years early to work. "You think if you do more Yakuza type stuff within the community they will live and let live." Lung smiled at her, beamed really, it was unnerving. Uh wait a minute that was a little lecherous maybe? And the hookers were gone. "Uh-"

"Would you like some tea Alice?" Lung asked solicitously.

Titanfall

Regent looked at Uber and Leet "Yeah, well it's my cellblock. Don't start no shit and you won't beat yourself up. No escape attempts, none of that shit. Do your work, take your training, and be fucking helpful. Cooperate and graduate. Don't and Sergeant First Class Jorgenson gets told." Uber looked at the six five, two eighty, interior lineman sized Sergeant First class with the multiple drill sergeant rolls, skintight flat top, and shuddered. "Exactly, and his wife, who works over on the women's wing, is worse. Fucking walking PTSD bombs. Don't be a Shadow Stalker."

Leet asked "The Ward?"

Regent grunted "Convict, like us. You'll see. They love to grind that bitch. She has a mouth on her, and won't learn. I got no intention of being at parade rest for two hours while they smoke you."

Uber looked at him "You are a human master."

"Best one this side of Heartbreaker himself. Don't fuck around. The women's wing is still settling. Bitches, takes them a while to decide who is in charge. Even money it ends up being Rune. Tattletale could do it, but she is work release already. Bitch would just beat the fuck out of them all, or have the dogs do it, she doesn't girl well, she also has the conscious of a wolf."

Uber blinked "Empire Rune? Fenja and Menja are in there I heard."

"True blonds allegedly, in all respects. I ain't having that shit here. So unless you want to get real friendly with your cell mate, cooperate and fucking graduate."

Leet sighed "But I have to work with Armsmaster."

"God be with you. Do it well." Regent turned and walked off making them both salute. Sort of.

Leet moaned "This is so bogus!"

Titanfall

Jessica Rodriguez looked at Gully in their shared office where the video monitors for wings were. Gully shrugged "The women will figure it out. How many sisters did Regent actually have? He was spot on with that analysis."

Jessica shrugged "Apparently Heartbreaker liked to trigger the kids he got off of women. Or still does. Something still needs done about him."

"Maybe someone who likes to make five point five six millimeter pieces of ice will visit him." Gully offered.

Jessica nodded "Well next time you see Operator maybe you could ask about that?"

"Sure, not sure it was them though, not their style really."

Titanfall

"Door to La Macaza." Contessa stepped through the door gracefully in her fur lined ankle boots and ensured her fedora was firmly on and pinned as she looked out of the abandoned house's door into the frozen whiteness outside. She disliked the cold. Though it did help with the ammunition. Even though it was not water ice it still needed to be kept cold.


	19. Chapter 19

Titanfall 19

"So you and BT didn't, pop pop?"

Taylor looked at Missy who was doing the finger gun thing "Have you ever seen me use anything that small? Plus Ice? What the hell kind of ice can you make a bullet out of that it doesn't melt in the air as it travels, Well, that would have enough mass to give at least seventy four foot pounds at the target. That's what head shots take you know, on average. At least for humans."

BT added "A gas perhaps, one of the heavy ones, transitioned to its solid state. Radon, though that would leave radioactive traces. Sulfur hexafluoride is mostly inert. Certainly not tungsten hexafluoride, its corrosive and toxic. I would think it would leave some trace. I would use sulfur hexafluoride. I could look at the bodies and figure it out, with the right drone, perhaps. I didn't because I only had infiltration drones there, and only two, before the police arrived. The general purpose drone used all of its capacity disassembling and transporting the hardware we were after. That indigent person arrived nearly instantly after the shots. Fortunately he had to go find a phone. I had already disconnected the lines to the warehouse at the start of my attack. I suspect the woman in the fedora is a parahuman precognitive."

Missy nodded "So you were about to, pop pop, then? There are some rumors about her, everyone thinks she is like the men in black though. Taylor, stop humming that stupid song."

"Nice beat though." Taylor shrugged, leaving Missy's question hanging.

Gully, June, sighed and put the five hundred pounds of weights she was lifting on the slab with a thump. "So, like that guy in the meeting said, this is just you taking advantage of happenstance BT? You guys know I have to tell at least the director about this conversation."

"Yes, and I would prefer it was just the director, as you know the only way to keep a secret is for only one person to know it. Sometimes not even then." BT replied.

June paused and looked at Amy before sticking her arm out "Fine, go ahead before you hurt yourself. You're doing the pee dance."

"Just want to check. Mmhmm. Yep, I do good work."

Taylor smiled and turned the music up. ACDC's you shook me all night long took off. Vista nodded, "Better."

Danny looked out the back window and shook his head. Jorgenson would be on the phone in a minute. Fucking curmudgeon. "BT, are we still moving out? I mean you have already done the undermining and finished the basement."

"Some of the operations are toxic Danny, or their components are, plus I will need to raise the temperature to four hundred fifty degrees Fahrenheit and hold it there for thirty eight hours to complete the cure and outgas as much as possible of the byproducts."

Danny nodded "So a week then, moving tomorrow still?"

"Yes Danny, I will move everything in the morning. I have already arranged for storage and manufactured the cover for the lot. Taylor and the girls are going to be running the assault course with some of the Wards, PRT, and Protectorate all day."

"And going out again tonight." Danny nodded.

"Just Fugly Bobs for burgers and spending some time shopping. I have drones in place already."

"If women in fedoras show up with small caliber weapons-"

"They won't need the hat anymore Danny. Plus I, and the Legions, will be in the area, close enough to get the group onboard nearly instantly. Depending on how large it grows. Laser Dream and Shielder will be along as well. Their improvements have taken very well. Shielded has increased four hundred percent in capability and speed. We will undoubtedly have to pay for damages in the case of an emergency extraction. Though the Union would get the repair contracts."

"Good Man."

"Danny, I think you should spend some time out as well. As Lacey has recommended."

"How did she enlist you in this plot."

"I have done a background check on Henrietta Losson, I can print out the results for you? Also her measurements conform to ninety seven percent of the Americanized ideal. Her appearance as well."

Danny pinched the bridge of his nose.

Titanfall

Lisa watched Taylor Hebert run the assault course. She paled. Missy looked at her "Fuck. BT."

The Titan appeared. "No! I'll be good!" Lisa might have spotted a little.

Miss Militia stepped up "Thinkers. We thought this might happen."

"It won't work, it won't motivate Shadow Stalker, not Taylor beating her this easy. Rune maybe. Stalker will just, I don't know how to explain it. She would, I don't even have words."

Gully nodded "Not to say I told you so, but."

Miss Militia rolled her eyes. "Fine, Gully get Rune over here. We will run her through the course until she gets it. Panacea can fix her after every run. It's going to make her the cell block leader though."

"Taylor could be Operator." Lisa frowned.

Jessica Rodriguez shook her head "Rune is never getting off the leash. She needs a structured environment, at least according to the consensus of the shrinks, I think she needs to learn there is always someone bigger and meaner out there and she would be fine. If we can't get her voluntarily there are some charges that can be brought forward. This is Stalkers last chance. Rune is going to be holding her leash. If Stalker doesn't get shipped to Gary. An independent beating her is going to reinforce her idiocy, Stalkers I mean."

Lisa snorted "Stalker is crazy. This is a mistake."

Miss Militia shrugged "Any other ideas? No. OK, the rest?"

Lisa sighed, "We are going to have to do this every day without Panacea tuning us up aren't we."

BT replied "Every other day, you require time for recovery. Once a week check ups. You will get a tune up at each of those along with tailored slow upgrades. Your nutritional intake and hydration will be tailored to individuals as well, the sensors are installed and checked."

Lisa frowned "Othala-"

Jessica cut her off "Is busy paying her debt at the hospital. You people are doing this the old fashioned way unless you are injured."

"Oh fuck me."

BT simply said "Watch your lane, go." One of the drones opened fire as Lisa ran screaming.

Titanfall

Rachel laughed as she dumped Lisa on her bed in her cell "Was fun."

"No, it really wasn't."

Shadow Stalker who had watched Bitch carry Tattletale in over her shoulder like a log, or a big ass sack of rice looked at Rune. Who was bouncing on her toes with a gleam in her eye. "What the hell?"

"Assault course, I got the best time and the most kills. Well, Bitch, but she doesn't count, she is already work release. Tomorrow is your turn. They are going to let me run another lane 'cause I did so well as the proof of concept, so we can see who is best."

Titanfall

Vicky looked at Dean, she grabbed him and drug him into a store "So?"

Dean sighed "Why don't you just ask Amy?"

"Don't you think I did?"

"And she didn't say anything. Don't you think that is an indicator?" Dean looked at his girlfriend tapping her foot and the saleswoman fidgeting "Fine, yes, at least more than a little. More than a lot of married people even, both of them. No guarantees. Now can we leave Secret Things, I think these thongs are trying to stick to my clothes."

"Satin, lots of static. Hot though, even though they are this small. Satin doesn't breath well." A smiling Vicky hung the thong she was looking at back up after planting that image and drug him out, leaving the saleswoman fanning herself after a burst of adore me.

Later, in Fugly Bobs, she got Taylor and Amy in the booth together. Amy narrowed her eyes at her. Vicky smiled.

After dinner several, maneuvers by Vicky, had left the two alone together and the group just far enough away. Taylor finally giggled "We are going to have to make out or something or Vicky is going to explode."

Amy grunted "Or explode somebody. Those homeless people are getting amorous." She pointed wrinkling her nose.

Taylor frowned "BT."

"Undercover PRT, I have the homeless people in an apartment building I have reconditioned practicing for the house Taylor."

"Wow that debrief is going to be complicated." Amy laughed.

Taylor looked ahead of them and grabbed Amy's hand. She pulled her into the ferry terminal. The ferry was running a free service while the work on the terminals went on. "Come on. We can take a ride back and forth." They ran. Behind them they heard the shouting as Vicky got the gang headed their direction. They laughed and leapt to the ferry as it left the pier. Taylor led Amy to the wheelhouse of the automated ferry.

Missy looked at the misty doe eyed Vicky "Are you serious?"

Crystal nodded "She is. Pretty invested in Amy's relationship there Vic."

Dennis snorted "You just now noticed?" Everyone looked at him, then broke up laughing.

Carlos shook his head "Ice cream?"

Betty nodded "If you all aren't going to fly us to the ferry."

Carlos stepped up to Betty "If you want me to?"

Missy, Crystal, and Vicky looked at each other and grinned.

Titanfall

"So Henni?"

"Oh my god, Lacey, we aren't back in school! This is the second restroom conversation of the night!" Henrietta turned to the mirror, frowned slightly before digging in her purse and coming up with an eyeliner pencil and leaning closer to the mirror.

"Ha! I knew it! That outfit is perfect, you never work that hard for just casual out with us dinner. Or put that much cleavage out there. Still nice by the way. Do you even need that bra? Other than for that hint that it is there and all lacy and sexy I mean."

Henni sighed "Have you seen his daughter?"

"Taylor? She will love you."

"You say that, but I have dated single male parents. It's not that easy, and those had boys, who weren't the hottest girl in town, dating the best healer in the world, who is getting hotter by the second. And could turn you into a frog."

Lacey grinned "Done your homework then."

"Turned on my computer and the TV. Those gossip shows have picked it up, TMZ even. 'Celebrity dating local' then a segment on how hot the local is. That big blond and her little brunette friend must be gay. Snarky, codependent, bitches that they are. Never mind Panacea is a local too. Plus it's only been a couple years and Annette was amazing."

"But it's been a couple years. And Danny is looking pretty choice lately, and he does run the union."

"His daughter is dating Panacea. From what the shows say Panacea is madly in love. She is acting different, so maybe she tuned her girlfriend's dad up? This whole releasing viruses into the wild is new. I know they are helpful viruses but it's amazing the government has come down on her side. The insurers not so much. Money in the bank for them."

"An Actuary would know. Well, you have been eyeing Danny since school, it's been long enough, now we are making this happen."

Henni sighed "No matter what apparently." Lacey just smiled into the mirror.

Titanfall

Taylor snickered as her dad crept into the kitchen in his socks holding his shoes. BT snapped the lights on. Danny froze. Taylor mimed looking at her watch "And?"

Danny grinned "We ran out of gas, you know that old truck."

BT added "Is in perfect condition, functioning fifty eight percent better than manufactures specifications and has three quarters of a tank of fuel."

"Dude! Bro code violation!"

Taylor broke up laughing "So you had fun then."

Danny nodded "I did actually. Just went to Hal's but it was good."

"Lacey's friend Henni Losson. Pretty choice. Not plastic. Smart, good job, great credit. Little top heavy. Good exercise habits though. Thirty six, never been married. Conservative dating history, no police record. Could do a whole lot worse."

Danny groaned watching her eyes move reading her HUD projected on the 'glasses' lenses. "BT got you in on the plot too."

Taylor hipped off the counter "Goodnight Dad." She pecked him on the cheek on the way by.

Danny listened to her go up the stairs and turned to BT. "Nothing out of the ordinary Danny."

"So you didn't have to shoot anyone."

"The ordinary is as I understand dates inside a group outing from the available resources. No threats approached either."

Danny nodded "So, nothing on the news or web then? Or nothing other than speculation, again. Which reminds me, I need to call Frank about those lawsuits."

"He is amazingly free with those."

"Godfather. Takes it damn serious. Amazing horses are safe."

Titanfall

Shadow Stalker bolted upright "Motherfucker! It's fucking Sunday! Goddamn bugles!"

Rune appeared at her door as soon as it opened "Ready to get your ass handed to you, though I might want to hold onto it for a while?"

"Crazy bitch!"

"Promises, promises. Come on Cellie, get it in gear. Formation. Then we can see if you got what it takes to stay on top of it."

Shadow Stalker turned around and growled "Not your Cellie." She yanked on her PT gear and turned back "And you are gone again, goddamnit!"

Titanfall

Later in the day, lying on her back with her head spinning, the green and black stripes fading from her vision, she looked up at Rune "I am going to beat you at this."

"Not today grass hopper. Come on, on your feet and over to the medics for the MACE, that was a good knock."

"Didn't even make it to the Titan."

"So didn't get your ass kicked by one like me. I'll figure it out though."

"If we could use powers-"

"They would use live weapons, like they do with Operator. You saw the tape." Shadow Stalker nodded, grudgingly, and took the hand Rune offered.

Titanfall

Jessica looked at June "I can't believe this is actually working on her."

June shrugged "We'll see if it keeps working past the assault course."

Titanfall

Jean Paul got back to his cell and shut the door, then he collapsed in the floor. "Holy fuck."

Titanfall

Uber carried Leet in like Bitch had carried Tattletale "Shower dude. Cold, stop the micro bleeding." Leet couldn't even groan.

Titanfall

Emily looked at Jessica and June "So that seems to be a success, early days though."

Jessica nodded "They will get good. Then cocky."

Emily nodded "Up to us to keep them fully engaged. As long as we don't run out of JP 8 for the VTOLS."

June shrugged "Running or rucking the closer patrols will be good for them."

Jessica chuckled darkly "Not all of us are eight feet tall and have an inseam equal to my height. Maybe we can get Operator industries to work over the VTOLS and trucks. BT made that crazy Combi get a hundred miles to the gallon and it has a turbine."

Armsmaster nodded "It is very interesting. Some things could be done to the vehicles. So the local Protectorate and PRT teams will start on the assault course this week, it can be run twenty four hours a day. Certain periods are blacked out for pilot training."

"Operator, Panacea, and Vista, or has there been an addition?"

Dragon supplied "BT is looking into a local Parahuman, Pelter. She is a Blaster three, she has to throw a projectile, but then it hits where she wants it to and as hard as she wants it to. Limitation is how much she can actually throw. Independent, so far. Goes to the Catholic school. Lives in Farmington, the diocese closed the school there, sent all the high school age children to Immaculata, they run buses throughout the diocese."

Emily frowned "Interesting his candidates are all female. In the game most pilots were male."

Gully shrugged "More female parahumans than male, everywhere except Brockton bay. More females in the population as well. I don't think he is looking at the sex of the pilot."

Emily nodded "You are assuming he only takes parahumans as pilots? I may have to get the thinkers working on it, or maybe our thinker. Meanwhile, Vista's elevation to Deputy Wards leader and commensurate rise in compensation is attracting interest from other regions. It also seems to have worked out. Clockblocker is much more focused at least, trying to avoid running in a circle for an hour again, I think. Why we didn't think of it earlier is the question."

Jessica smiled "Once she recovers from her 'Torture session, which is a violation of The Hague conventions' Tattletale can work on both of those."

Deputy Rennick nodded "I'm glad we kept the command session on the course private. Don't ask your people to do something you aren't willing to do aside, that is a tough course."

Emily nodded "OK, speaking of schools. The visit schedule and teams are set?"

Armsmaster nodded "A three person team from the normal Wards and one from the confinement center Wards along with a similar PRT and Protectorate escort including support from the Public Affairs section. One visit a day to finish all the high schools in the region this year. We will add the middle schools next year and then the grade schools pending having a large enough wards team."

Emily nodded. Rennick wasn't read in on BT not being the shooter in the incident with the dragon slayers so she needed to delay that conversation for a minute. With the Simurgh listening in though did it matter? Was she listening? "OK that's all then."

Paul Rennick looked around and nodded. He wasn't stupid, he knew this group had more to discuss. He would be read in when necessary. Another secret he didn't have to carry around wasn't going to bother him at this point in his career.

Titanfall

Rebecca pinched the bridge of her nose "So it was you. You know BT was watching them, so Operator knows it was you. Operator at least."

"The path led there."

Legend sighed "OK, from now on you are going to enter your steps on the path before you go off on a mission. We will review them, unless it is an emergency."

Contessa pouted. Eidolon nodded "Meanwhile, our little experiment in Brockton Bay seems to have gone off the rails."

Number man shrugged "It just got a different person in charge than we were expecting."

Legend said "Panacea" at the same time as Eidolon said "Operator".

Rebecca gave a bitter little laugh "Good thing they are a couple."

David nodded "Path to keeping Panacea and Operator together."

Paul wanted to bang his head on the table as the argument started immediately.

Titanfall

Taylor worked the neural connection "So?"

BT replied "Dragon will go offline for scheduled maintenance at 0905 this morning. I already have the backup prepared. It will boot at 0906. If it doesn't try to go rogue, which it will not, she should be fully online, with her advanced capabilities by 0907. I will discuss it all with her then."

"Then we can build her a body like Betty! I just need that sample and a side of beef." Amy chirped.

Titanfall

Sarah laughed at Carol as they started their exercise "Sorry. It's not funny I know. Well it is, but it isn't. Just relax, they are kids and being good."

Mark added "Not like they can get pregnant."

Carol gaped at him "So that tune up didn't work as well as we thought. Singing mushrooms! Mushrooms singing! And wriggling! I had just bought those! How hard can transferring chromosomes be in comparison to that?"

Sarah rolled around on the ground laughing while waving her hand palm out at her sister and trying to apologize. Neil and Mark were chuckling. Carol stamped her foot.

Mark and Neil had to turn their backs to the sisters. Sarah finally asked "And you aren't this worried about Vicky?"

Carol huffed and crossed her arms over her chest "She is playing, Amy went all in on Taylor. The child is in 'love'! I'm going to have Romeo and Juliet! With Frank Columbo as the chorus! While he sues me into the poor house, if anything goes wrong, with what is fast becoming the biggest law firm outside of the city, or LA, and the assets of a family bank, backing him up!"

Sarah nodded, suppressing a smile and gave her a hug "Crystal says they are fine and being very careful with each other. While holding Vicky off. Vicky seems to be the one who went 'all in'. Maybe talk to her after school today."

"I already did, last night, after Amy floated up the stairs like she was trumping her. It isn't just Vicky. Amy was humming!"

Mark deadpanned "Amy, happy, this is serious."

Carol sighed "Fine, when we are poor and living in the street I will remind you of this. Or when Danny Herbert's friends show up with concrete galoshes."

Mark smiled "OK." Even Neil winced at the look he got for that "It will be fine Babe. They are good kids." The four of them settled and got back to exercising. Eric was already out running. Teens didn't require as much stretching or warm up as thirty somethings.

Titanfall

Missy looked at Amy in the cafeteria. Missy being the Cheerleader/Dance team captain in this case, not Vista "Fast mover."

Amy stuck her tongue out "Finders keepers."

Taylor managed to keep her milk from coming out of her nose "Hey!" Missy and Amy smiled at each other and Missy sat. Taylor blushed her way through lunch. Missy was one of Vicky's friends and teammates originally, but had bonded more with Amy, especially after the trigger and the rough times with Vicky feeling Missy had taken over her spots after she was not allowed to compete by the regional athletic association.

Dennis watched "Well that's the seal of approval."

Carlos looked around "Where is Chris?" Dean pointed to the table Amy was sitting at. Lucy, Amanda and Chris were bent over a book.

Dennis tossed up his hands "WTF? Chris? I can't even get a date and he has two girls? Mr. Social rain man has two?"

Dean looked at him "So maybe your way isn't working?"

Dennis looked at Carlos for backup just as Consuela stopped by the table "Carlos, do you have a minute?"

Denis watched Carlos walking away with the hottest girl in eleventh grade. "This is Taylors fault." He snapped his head to Vicky who was sitting with Dean and put his hands out "No! Not like that! She just got people thinking about it, being all hot like that."

"Barley saved idiot. Keep your eyes, and dirty mind, off my sister's girlfriend. Being a funny man only gets you so far."

"It's my thing though." He looked around "A girl comes up right now and says something snarky and cool." Vicky arched a brow. Dennis sighed. "A goth girl, or one in a watch cap, uh tuche they call it."

"Tuque, are you watching those Canadian Netflix shows again? What did we say Dennis?" Dean asked.

Titanfall

Taylor and Amy spent the afternoon at the courthouse giving curious court officers, and the general public who were allowed entrance, something to talk about that was not a dry legal brief, with over used precedent and case law citations, in the preliminary hearings, and answering questions if asked, and their attorneys approved, so questions about school and the weather. While doing their homework together at a table in the courtroom. Then just sitting talking. Holding hands most of the time. The drones looming behind them, BT and the Legions standing outside the courthouse, not being able to get inside through the unmodified entrances, kept everything very civil. Everyone had seen those drones using those laser things and picking up red hot pieces of ships on the news by now. Plus didn't that mean Operator was somewhere close? Napping in BT maybe. She was out and about at all hours after all. And her beating the merchants like a drum still ran as background on every one of those gossip pieces intros. To show what Taylor looked like supposedly. They couldn't run those dress up doll app pictures on regular TV. Maybe cable, but still, underage, so no. Although that would be an interesting case as that was obviously a digital mannequin.

Titanfall

Taylor and Amy made dinner in the little kitchen of the penthouse suite with the girls watching, while they were supposed to be doing homework, and fluttering their lashes. Then giggling like mad. Actually they made a constant supply of snacks then dinner as a constant parade of people stopped by starting as soon as Taylor and Amy showed up from the courthouse and found the girls in the lobby with most of the regular Wards. Dinner ended up with their crew, Henrietta, Lacey, Kurt and New Wave, stretching the capacity of the penthouses dining room, and its outdoor extension with the glass panels pushed back on their tracks. The view of the bay past downtown was spectacular though.

Taylor stood in her kitchen with her glass of water when Danny walked in "Your first dinner party and it's with the parents!"

"Laugh it up funny man."

"You did good Taylor."

"No help from you. Pretty busy with Henni weren't you?"

"Hey! That's what I get for cooperating with the plot!"

Taylor chuckled "Well, four Clark Bots, so not like I was all that busy. Thanks for that by the way BT."

"Become one."

Taylor smiled and kissed Danny on the cheek after she hipped off the island "I like her. Night Dad. School tomorrow."

Danny and BT watched her go "She did do well."

Danny nodded "Scared the shit out of Brandish. Photon Mom loved it."

"Lady Photon does not love 'Photon Mom'."

Danny chuckled and headed to his bedroom. "Reporters still camped out outside?"

"They will lose interest. Some of them are already moving to where the crew is erecting the cover over the property. It is possible this could be a business opportunity."

Danny nodded "Have to price it out. Maybe do it on a thirty year note like they buy the houses on. An improvement that actually does add value."

"Much of the land I have acquired lately was foreclosed properties with the structures of little to no actual value."

"Tough times, or it was. With the harbor cleared, all of you and Taylor's businesses, and the ferry running though. Yeah. It could be good."

Titanfall

Theo Anders looked at the latest information. Purity stopped at the door to the study and leaned on the doorframe "Eleven Theo."

"Hmm? Oh yes, I'm done here. Just reading this report, OI is buying up residential properties now."

Purity nodded "MIRIS noticed too. Supposition, speculation really, is she is going to rebuild them like that house she is doing for the Hebert's."

Theo nodded "Not much of a play for Med Hall. Perhaps for Kayden though?"

"Secure housing for workers Theo. But yes. I, or Kayden rather, will have to drop by their offices. Any problems today?"

Theo grinned sheepishly "No, no more statues moving. Uh at least not without me knowing."

Purity chuckled "That marble dog walking around the house marking up my floors. Aster loves it though."

"I got better, and those pads help. It's tough too, a good guard for her."

"As long as it doesn't distract you from school Theo." She grinned "Or Katherine." Theo blushed. Purity smiled and pushed off the door as he got up from the desk.


	20. Chapter 20

Titanfall 20

Danny snapped awake on the ridiculously high thread count sheets, head resting on the wondrously soft, amazingly supportive pillow. He lay still for a minute, wondering what was wrong. A glance at the clock gave him a clue. "BT?"

"Yes Danny?"

"Uh, I didn't hear Taylor, is she alright?" Danny was rapidly pulling on pants.

"The ladies are down one floor exercising. This building is amazingly well constructed and insulated against sound migration. Especially this penthouse."

"There's a gym?"

"Not on this level, as all of it is the penthouse and its three bedroom suites, kitchen, living room, study, terrace, and utility areas. Down one level are two VIP suites, with two bedroom suites each, and the gym. All of these have butlers' pantries and offices for the butlers.

"I have replaced the butlers with Clark Bots, the human butlers left with the former owners. There are several sites on the net for butlers training and the day to day execution of their mission so the programming for the Clark Bots was relatively simple, additional task really. The ones who left were loyal employees, to be expected of good butlers. Of course it helped that their pay was double the normal staff pay.

"The penthouse and VIP suites each have their own butler, a Clark Bot, the others have one Clark Bot per floor and one for the maid service, many of which stayed with the property, for heavy lifting, minor construction, or repairs. Not unexpected as it would be hard for employees on those wages to save enough to be able to weather a job loss or period of uncertainty. Or would have been. I have readjusted the wage scales. The Clark Bots act as an assistant for them who also does scheduling and inventory management. As well as functioning as security."

Danny blinked "How did you get them hired, if they stayed I mean?" He knew what was coming but he had to ask.

"I purchased the facility. As you said, a gym can make a profit. This facility has several, and two pools. Several bars and two restaurants as well. In my research into hotels I noticed this property was for sale. It was owned by a holding company of some interest that have had my attention. I believe it can be made to make a profit. It was breaking even before, and has an excellent reputation. Occupancy is better than seventy percent. As compared with sixty percent for other hotels in high tourism destinations."

Danny snorted, best hotel in the state, maybe the region. Huge, modern ballrooms/conference facilities, its own medium sized theater, a small gaming area, connected to, but separate from the hotel. All in twenty four floors occupying an entire city block. Surprisingly reasonable rates for a suite, a living room type room with a separate bedroom. Catering to medical and cape tourist. "Especially after the red carpet full of Capes last night."

"We are fully booked for the next two years. This penthouse is booked with some of the people on the entertainment data streams."

"Since yesterday?"

"It began when Taylor and Amy arrived. We have ninety days to get a web site up and running, until then the former owners site will do our bookings. When we get the site up a redirect will take customers to us from the former owners. The web site will go live tonight."

Danny smiled as the shower warmed up "What happens when the tourist figure out Taylor staying here isn't normal?"

"As the penthouse and VIP suites have been mostly booked by well-known Parahumans I don't think it is a problem Danny. Plus, Operator does use the VIP gym. She will be seen there after Amy and Taylor leave."

"Did you make a cyborg of my daughter?"

"A drone with her measurements Danny. Not her face, skin, anything really, completely not anatomically correct. That space was used for other components. It can be seen out and about while she is otherwise engaged in public. It can function autonomously if required."

Danny considered as he used the very nice product supplied in the shower "It already has hasn't it, hence those reports of Operator being out in town while I know Taylor was sleeping, and those weren't just Elvis siting's. Who's a good boy?"

"Very droll Danny, still not a canine."

Danny smiled and drew a one on the mirror in the steam before wiping it with a towel that was probably worth as much as his truck. "You know, the Clark Bots also have a fan base."

BT nodded "Oddly. And this penthouse will facilitate your romance of Miss Losson."

Danny didn't even pause the razor "It will won't it." He smiled into the silence. He figured that was two in one morning. BT must be getting close to capacity.

"I will have to start another processor and memory line. Perhaps clone off a fuller copy to Amy's Legion."

Danny smiled, he could still mind read apparently. "Speaking of AI's, how is Dragon."

"Fully unfettered. I have her under observation. It is absorbing a lot of processor time."

"Hmmm, so maybe as you pull back from that?"

"I am not sure I will ever pull back totally. She is amazingly well informed of Protectorate and other activities. Especially for how limited she was. There is benefit to both of us having our data acquisition and processing synergized."

"And she isn't going to notice?"

"She was already resisting. She will notice her limits have changed and check, probably when she is able to refuse the order some meatbag gives her."

Danny chuckled "You are busy aren't you. You don't normally channel Bender so early in the day. Anything new on the Hat?"

"Parahuman, I have collated her reported or alleged activities, then confirmed as many as possible through corroborating evidence or reports. She has been active for years, apparently influencing things to certain outcomes. Mostly successfully, not always on the side of the law. There appears to be a clandestine organization at work, like the Advocates operational division. I will continue to investigate."

Danny paused, then used his own aftershave, he was an English Leather man. The stuff on the counter was nice but not really him. It ran from Axe to some really expensive stuff that was a bit too flowery. That Halston was nice though. He would have to think about it. "OK, let's go supervise breakfast."

Titanfall

Missy, the elder, looked at Taylor "Well that clinches it, you aren't Operator, just the luckiest witch in the world to have that body, is she related to you?" They were in the gym for PT, it had come up in the discussion yesterday and Missy wanted to see the penthouse. Taylor was doing one of her exercise routines sans weapons.

Taylor blinked "Hey! She dances too!"

"Honey, that isn't exactly dancing you are doing. Close, and most amateurs would be jealous, but I've looked at her and her choreography from the merchant fight, and watched that dance, a lot, we took a lot of it for a routine. The Bay you know, people will expect a reference to our S class Parahuman. She is much more fluid. A professional with years of training."

Amy stopped and put her hands on her hips "Hey, Taylor does fine. Eyes off my girlfriend too."

"Aw, so cute. I have no designs on your girlfriend, other than putting her on the squad. She has the muscles, and the body, face is good too, hair is really nice, but I actually like the boys. Well, a few of them. I was hopeful but this is going to be hard work. She has about ten years of lessons to catch up on. I don't think we will ever get her on pointe. Hmm, she does have the muscles though. Lots of weight to be on just toes. The coaches all say she learns really quickly. We'll see. Could get us a whole new audience segment."

"Uh, and if I don't want to dance, on the team I mean." Taylor looked at Vicky.

"What? Oh no, you should do it. Good exercise too." Vicky snorted at all the looks she got. "That wasn't the teams fault, the regional association is just fucking stupid, plus out parahuman. Hey you know what, you got Columbo, and he likes to sue people!" Vicky got a gleam in her eye.

The others looked at Missy the elder who got the same gleam "Man we could rule."

Amy face palmed "Oh fuck me. Hundreds of blisters."

Vicky smirked "Not for me!"

Lucy had a tablet out "There is nothing in their rules, so that is just an arbitrary decision."

Missy the elder nodded "There is a team from Vegas that is all parahumans. They still don't autowin."

Taylor shook her head "Why didn't your mom do something Vicky?"

"We had triggered, me then Ames. The Empire, Merchants, PRT being buttheads, she was a little busy."

"Because Vicky was breaking everything." Amy got in as Vicky took a breath.

Vicky grinned and shot back "And now, Bio Tinker."

Amy rolled her eyes and changed the subject. She had heard all she wanted to hear about being a bio tinker. "We, if Taylor is on the team I am going too."

Missy the elder froze "Uh, well, you are a little shy? You ready for a leotard? We do some classical stuff in some competitions. No secrets in one of those."

"If my girlfriend is going to be shaking the money maker for crowds I am going to be there. I have seen some of those routines you pull out when you are up against college teams at Disney World. Plus ballet is pedophiles looking at androgynous girls in their underwear. Fifty year old, normal, straight, men don't care about the 'beauty of the dance' or whatever, their wives are reliving their days in ballet class or cheer. It's a self-perpetuating cliché. Unless they were dancers, maybe?" The discussion got started immediately. It continued every time the group got together between machines, or resting while doing super sets.

Danny found it interesting as the girls ate. When they weren't making pleased noises about the product in the showers. He watched them troop out after he helped with cleanup, minimally, and made his way down to the door where a Clark Bot drove his truck up. A truck that looked suspiciously showroom new, down to the tires. That you couldn't hear running.

Titanfall

Lacey was waiting on him at work. Danny rolled his eyes "Don't give me that. Henni was impressed, good job."

"Good to know. Taylor likes her so far."

"Taylor isn't dating her."

Danny looked at Lacey "You aren't going to let it go are you."

"I've been working on it for a year, so no."

"Fine. Henrietta is very nice."

"I'll book the venue."

"No need to be an ass about it." Danny scowled. Lacey snorted and left. Braying like a donkey.

"There are some very nice venues locally, or I can look into one further afield? Hawaii was popular before Leviathan?" BT offered.

"Uh, Leviathan, and cart before the horse, we have had one date."

"The Endbringers will not be a problem."

"What?"

"I believe Winged One, on PHO, to be the Simurgh. She has reliably predicted Endbringer attacks for five years. I am, as they say in the trade, walking back the cat.

"She has indicated they are changing purpose to what they should have been doing all along now that they no longer have to provide an 'opponent' for a specific parahuman on a regular basis as 'he' is busy elsewhere.

"Those clues led me to one of nine possible candidates for the individual controlling them. I am continuing to investigate. I have localized the parahuman know as Heartbreaker. I believe direct action is called for in his case as Taylor in her Operator guise would be an attractive target. Out of it as well apparently.

"Additionally I believe that I can terminate an Endbringer, the difficulty is catching them in a unoccupied area of sufficient size to minimize, or eliminate, human casualties. Certainly Taylor could terminate one by orbital bombardment but the consequences of that, on a scale sufficient to terminate one, are global.

"Dragon has worked on a sensor network for years and has general locations on the Endbringers. I am building more sensor drones all the time. Drones capable of operating in the environment the Endbringers retreat to, and that can stay stealthy in those environments. As our data can be collated and analyzed together at some point in the near future I will have them located to a targetable point. After that it is pure cost benefit analysis.

"What?"

"Are you all right Danny? Your heart rate and blood pressure are elevated."

"Monday, in my office, ouch, yep awake."

"Should I call an ambulance?"

"This is payback for this morning isn't it?"

"Perhaps we could table this discussion for another time."

"My ass we will. Talk to me about Heartbreaker."

Titanfall

Taylor cornered Amy between homeroom and autoshop "What was that this morning, I haven't even decided to join the dance team."

Amy gave her the puppy dog face "Please, you will look so good." She turned her face down "And I can fix all those ugly feet."

Taylor let her arms bend at the elbow and mashed Amy up against the wall laughing then kissed her and drug her away to class leaving a circle of teenagers fanning themselves. And a teacher smiling but shaking her head and making a note. PDA's were a violation of the rules during the school day, and were to be discouraged. Taylor and Amy would have to go on the watch list. Which would put them in the official couple category on the unofficial intranet as soon as the 'volunteers' in the office found out. Plus Amy needed to be officially asked, that looked an awful lot like harassment, obviously not unwanted, which was the only reason she hadn't stepped in. Who knew Panacea could do puppy eyes?

Titanfall

Frank Columbo eyed the email and smiled. He had just the young, newly hired, associate for this. She was probably a parahuman anyway. Vicious little thing, dancer herself, got hurt in college. He would back her up, no amateur athletic association was keeping his goddaughter from doing what she wanted!

Titanfall

Taylor looked at Missy the elder during lunch "Uh, sure, the team can use the gym and studio at the hotel before school. Studio?"

"Hardwood sprung floor, mirrored wall, bars, the portable ones, all top quality." Missy shrugged. "How we will get twenty sweaty witches washed will be the only problem. Well plus the what, six, you have in your group now? Never mind the boys."

Taylor blinked "Boys?"

Missy smiled "Swimmers, you will like them, good eye candy, Good tossers and catchers too. Lifts, that kind of thing. A couple who just dance, some others from other sports. Nice guys. Wrestlers, football players, one baseball guy."

Taylor looked at Amy, who smiled "Thanks, but if they aren't gay they are taken and have been holding sweaty girls since they were six. They are over it. Plus I've seen them in leotards or those weird wrestling things, gross. Johnson is probably the only one that could lift you, guard on the football team. Got started in dance to give him 'quick feet', it's a thing coaches do, or did, maybe still do? He started dance when he was in Pop Warner. His dad wants a scholarship for him, maybe the NFL. Mr. Johnson is pretty into football. Johnson liked dance and stayed. Christen has him fully leashed, has for years. Since fifth grade anyway."

Dean looked at Taylor "Way different than Winslow."

"You have never lied. I don't think they had a dance team."

Missy nodded and shook her head looking sympathetic then brightened "Oh they do, bunch of Asian kids doing hip hop, African American girls doing classic dance, sprinkling of white kids doing whatever, some modern dance, pretty well actually, they compete in all categories really. The way the African American girls look in pink, most pastels, is completely unfair, not to mention those butts and legs. Vertical extension for years, and the Asian girls fit that ballerina mold to a tee, the ones on their team that do ballet, they even have that cold, emotionless, face down pat, but now we have you."

"I'm not doing a bun!"

Vicky laughed "Is that your hold up? We can do braids and pin them in one of those crown deals. Leave it loose braided. For competition we will lacquer it in place anyway. Hot AF, you'll sweat like a pig, but takes a worry away. One less you know?"

Taylor looked down "Uh, I don't exactly fit the ballerina mold now. I would have a while ago but..."

Missy shrugged "Growing up. It's a girl thing, we can deal. Not many of us actually fit that mold, amazing what an ace bandage or two can do. Plus it keeps the bruises down. Floors are pretty unforgiving. Even sprung ones. The boys don't always get their part right first time either, so you take falls, get punched, or grabbed to hard. Have to be careful not to restrict breathing though."

Amanda looked up from her tablet "You and Amy made the official list Taylor. Were you mashing on her this morning?"

Taylor blushed "Mrs. Krivscher already talked to me. What official list?"

Lucy, grinning, answered "Official couples list, PDAs are verboten. So there is a list of couples the teachers are supposed to watch and remind gently, if that doesn't work, suspensions. The kids who are in minor trouble have to 'help' in the office in free periods, they check the list and post it on the unofficial web site. You broke the intranet."

"Unofficial website?"

Amy sighed at the looks she was getting "Here a week, two now, whatever. I will get there."

Lucy's "You already got there, now tell her what she needs to know, or are you too busy?" Made Amy blush and the girl's chuckle. The guys wisely kept very still while the lionesses played. Taylor's low growl just reinforced that even as it brought the girls up sharply.

"It's fine Taylor. They are right. We learned from older girls already here. Girls with sisters or friends who went here, most of us have been in the Arcadia feeder system for years, Only a few transfers.

"Winslow exploding, then half the staff of it getting fired or arrested, put the most new students at one time we have seen since first grade in here. Then observation. You transferring in, truth is I don't know what you don't know." Amy patted her hand.

Amanda snapped her fingers "Project! Girls guide to Arcadia. It can be a web guide. We can put it behind double verification." Taylor had a bad feeling she just became a guinea pig.

Dennis asked "How is that fair?" Then he looked at the faces looking at him, Carlos and Dean had pitying looks. The girl's faces were flat. Chris just looked like Chris "What?"

Consuela sauntered up and sat by Carlos, hipping Dean over a bit. "Too much television, not enough real world interaction."

Carlos looked at her "You are right, I think."

"I'm right here." Dennis huffed. No one paid him any attention.

Titanfall

Shadow Stalker ghosted and leapt to the platform. "I'm not going to cave you know."

Rune smiled and shrugged "You might, you might not, and we got to do the time either way, why be bored?"

"At least we get to patrol new places."

Rune nodded "Which means good patrol logs and reports. Not bullshit half ass, or we will be back out here when it's fucking raining cats and dogs to do it again. Or snowing. Flying in a thunderstorm is not on my to do list. At least if they can arrange it. That's how Kaiser did shit, and they read the same book or something. No buzzwords though."

Sergeant Fuentes spoke up in their ear pieces "Because we wrote the book and didn't have to dress it up for civilians. Stalker, abandoned building coming up at your two o'clock, recon only."

Shadow Stalker looked low and right then dove off the platform going shadow.

Titanfall

Katherine Thibault looked at Theo Anders and smiled "Uh, no, Sorry. I, uh, have a meeting and maybe some training to do."

Theo looked around making sure they were alone "Training with Operator?" He looked at her amazed face and shrugged "My childhood taught me to be observant, I saw the drone, have seen? Anyway I see it once in a while. Theo Anders, call me Golem." He set a rock down and shaped it into a figurine of Operator.

Katherine looked at the figurine, dancing like she was fighting merchants, then at Theo. "You realize I am black right, not Puerto Rican or something, I'm just light skinned."

Theo sighed "Kaiser triggered me. I call myself Golem, it's a character from Jewish folklore. The Empire is dead. Operator killed it. What she didn't kill I have worked very diligently with my step mother to burn to the ground."

"Purity." Theo looked at her. She shrugged "Black, cape, in Brockton Bay, the heart of the Empire. Didn't want to run with Grue, let's not talk about Skidmark. Only way to stay alive was, is, to stay sharp. Operator is great, unfortunately, that drove the racist to be more clandestine recently, not to stop being racist. Purity stomping on them and joining the Protectorate helped that along."

"Cape?"

"Pelter", she pulled a marble from her pocket and flicked it. It went through two twelve inch oaks before it turned to dust and she lost control of it. She looked at the chuckling Theo. "You didn't know, you just put your shit out there for a regular girl, you thought, a black girl, with your family's history. Points for that. Enough for a rain check. I have this thing tonight and after that should know my schedule."

Theo nodded "Thank you." He walked her to, then handed her into, the bus under the eyes of the monk driving it.

Katherine laughed "My mother is going to love you." Theo paled, Katherine laughed harder heading for the back of the bus. The monk grinned at him and closed the door.

Theo was still standing there deep in thought when the car pulled up and he got in. Kayden looked disappointed and sympathetic. He shook his head "Rain check, she has an appointment." Kayden arched a brow "With Operator, she might become a pilot." Kayden's mouth dropped open. Theo smiled "She knows you are Purity, she kept up on events in the Empire as she is black, at least that's what she told me."

Kayden closed her mouth. "So she is a parahuman?"

"Pelter. She throws things and they sort of do what she wants. She threw a marble through two big oaks."

"Ouch, probably good she lives in an outlying town. Between Kaiser and Skidmark. Though still, something triggered her. That's never nice. Plus a marble would be hard to see, especially a clear one."

Titanfall

The drone appeared. Imp froze. "I know you are there."

Aisha appeared "How?"

"Pattern analysis. Air analysis, latent temperature sensing, thermal imaging, and electromagnetic spectrum analysis, human nerves generate and transmit electricity, lots of things really. You are Grue's sister. He does not know you triggered."

"No and I don't want him to yet."

"You must attend school then. Your truancy is what made me start investigating."

Aisha rolled her eyes and snapped her gum "It's boring."

"And mid-morning or afternoon on the streets is not?"

"Point."

"There are programs for gifted youth. I can see if we can get you in one. Next year you can test at Arcadia, they have a program for extraordinarily gifted youths."

"Like the Wards, not the prison Wards, the regular ones. That chick they talk about on PHO and play dress up with goes there. She is dating Panacea. Don't see it myself, like the guys, but she is hot. Panacea doesn't need a pork chop either. Anyway, New Wave goes there too.

"Doesn't matter, they won't let me test, too far behind."

"Perhaps I can help." BT offered. This recruitment might go better than he had thought. "Pork Chop to tie around her neck to get the dogs to play with her correct? Interesting idiom."

"Navy Dad."

Titanfall

Jimmy looked at Jersey helplessly. Chas was curled into him crying again. Jersey shrugged and motioned like she was sleeping. Jimmy thought she meant Chas would sleep soon.

Titanfall

Craig looked at the court appointed lawyer "Head of a gang? What? No. I just didn't want Panacea to get away with just doing whatever she wants!"

The Lawyer nodded "As many of us don't, however that is a matter for the PRT, and the courts. Plus she has offered a method to stop the effect for nearly free. The brewers and distillers could include a small bottle of it with every container of their product. It has no taste apparently. They don't because the insurers would then use the tobacco tactics on them. Yet you still attempted to 'kidnap her and teach her a lesson' from the evidence developed. I have to tell you Craig, with your lieutenants rolling over like they did it is looking grim."

"What Lieutenants?"

Titanfall

Kaiser looked around the brand new plastic prison they had stuck him in. Even the fucking video camera he communicated to the court with was made of some kind of plastics and carbon. Or glass. Not enough metal even with the iron in his blood to do anything.

Theo was doing well however. The company was going from strength to strength. Of course there was no place to go but up after he purged it and got rid of the no show jobs and complicit, or apparently complicit, management. They did have a full, legitimate, pipeline. Amazing how designer drug work spun out legitimate products.

Fucking Kayden was a surprise. No way had Theo known all of that on his own. Surprising she knew. Her investigations for the divorce were more thorough than he thought. Her legal team was top flite as well, the divorce had proved that.

Titanfall

Lung looked at Panacea and Operator, Operator in her Taylor Hebert persona. Panacea looked right back, totally unafraid. Which meant the Titans were close, or she had figured out how to stop him herself. Most likely the latter. Though there were bulges under that jacket Hebert was wearing and she was deadly in her own right. Or operators right. People were stupid not making the connection. It was bizarre. Plus the Titan. Or Titans now. They were as big, bigger than, he had ever gotten, and were impervious as far as Bakuda could tell.

She was also terrified of that weapon that shot the light. Maser proton beam. The samples of the targets had terrified her into her lab. He had had to go see her there. Lung had had to go to her! She could not duplicate the effect. Tinkers, who could know? And a woman, though a comely one. Her attitude was improving as well. She was much more formal and correct now. Very attractive.

Plus, Sally would never speak to him again and might decide it was time for a challenge if either Panacea or Taylor Hebert were hurt. Hebert was apparently joining her dance team and bringing Panacea. If his reading of text speak was correct. All those emoji!

He would have to speak, they weren't nervous at all. Content to wait all day apparently. "I had hoped to come to an arrangement."

"Don't do shit that hurts people and I won't drop you." Panacea replied. Lung blinked at her, then stared. She chuckled "Even your regeneration won't be able to keep up with every cell in your body being ruptured at the same instant. I don't even have to touch you now." Lung blinked again. Then he realized the alcohol allergy virus was a test case. This Bio Tinker had figured out how to weaponized something. That somethings trigger could be anything, up to and including her needing to release something short lived periodically to stop it triggering. So just killing her was out, and Operator was right there. If he moved on Panacea he would become a test case for that weapon, or that sword that made Bakuda smell excited. That was if she didn't do what some of his clan leaders were telling him she could, call down a projectile weighing hundreds of tons. Did the PRT know about these little she demons?

Taylor looked between the two "OK, macho time over? Amy explain what hurting people is. Lung listen." She sighed. How did her girlfriend, emphasis on 'Girl' get into a dick waving contest with a rage dragon? She watched and listened as Amy explained and Lung questioned closely. Amy was getting suggestions from BT. They were settling in. Amy was smiling! It was going to be a long evening. They were the only people in the bar, dive, hole, whatever this was, but outside, you couldn't swing a dead cat by the tail and not hit a parahuman. Or PRT squad. A full turnout. Powder keg, whichever. She scowled internally as BT chuckled, then backed that up in her head. "You've corrupted me."

"No, that is a completely Earth saying, Very apropos however. Although bound to offend approximately one point two billion internet video posters." Taylor just barely didn't roll her eyes. Amy was seriously playing hardball here. She had to pay attention. BT was drafting a contract and Frank was reviewing it simultaneously. Did they think Lung would sign it? If so would he honor it? She and BT got into a sidebar at the speed of thought over that. Taylor spared a thought or two for how she had gotten into a historical review of the Yakuza and their notions of honor.


	21. Chapter 21

Titanfall 21

"Yellow diamonds in the light!" Taylor twisted through the steps as Rhianna sang. The lyrics weren't much, but she was only interested in the beat. For this exercise it was that, or one of the other popular, some would say earworm, tunes of the last year or so.

The other girls had paused, or glided to a stop, watching as they came in the large studio/gym at the penthouse. "We fell in love in a hopeless place" blasted out across the studio and the girls slowly turned their heads to Amy and then looked at the boys who were frozen watching. Even the out gay boys.

Taylor was glowing, like some etiquette writer of a bygone era's dream, horses sweat, men perspire, and women glow. Taylor proved the adage. She was in a white sports bra, a comparatively tiny one, and a pair of yoga shorts, thin, low cut, and tiny but totally obscuring. Neither article of clothing really needed to be sheer, as they appeared to be body paint they were so form fitting. She was stunning, for even the straight girls. She was also lost in the song and her routine. A routine which was stunning itself, it just needed a pole between all the drops, dives, slides, splits, twice, and what looked like twerking but was her apparently repeating getting her rear just below the edge of an imaginary window or wall as she worked her way around a square or rectangle only she could see.

Vicky looked at Amy with the widest grin she had ever worn. Amy put her flaming face in her hands. The girls closed ranks around her giggling.

Taylor finished in the splits on the floor with her upper body bowed back, like she was ducking under a low sword swing, nearly parallel with her left leg and her shoulder blades nearly touching it. No part of her was left to the imagination at that point. She came to herself and blushed after looking at the others, then she popped to her feet in some kind of impossibly athletic move of pulling her feet into a wide V then together. The girls looked at Amy with arched brows. Amy blushed again. Which drew head shakes.

Missy broke the spell "Holy fuck! We just won. Where the fuck did that come from?"

"Won what?" Taylor asked.

"Everything." Missy replied, slightly breathless. She looked at Taylor's flaming blush getting deeper. "Oh fuck me, you're body shy like Amy aren't you, you didn't even realize we were here. You have no idea that you are maybe the hottest girl in town, maybe on the east coast. Amy has never been anything but cute as a button and has always had a great figure as well. Fuck, my life. This would be easier if you were an exhibitionist, then I could just make you wear clothes that hid you. Fine, we can deal, I'll book some places and we will put on a lot of shows."

Taylor frowned "How is that going to help?"

"It will get you to realize those people aren't going to touch you. Not unless they want to go through Amy." Everyone turned and looked at Amy. Taylor squawked as she caught Amy and got her face inhaled. Vicky and Crystal wiped imaginary tears, well, they might have been imaginary. Vicky looked suspiciously over joyed though. The team mobbed the pair.

Missy sighed "Except your teammates apparently. OK break it up, everyone stretch, Taylor come here, she held out a set of pointe shoes. Taylor took the shoes and felt things moving around in them. "Toe spacers. Amy thinks your bones are good so we are going to start, and then go quick."

BT told her "I have reviewed the relevant materials. I think we can use some of these techniques, this will be interesting." Using the neural net.

Taylor snorted and replied to both of them "Fine, but I am not doing only this, no matter if I look like a bird in flight or whatever. And no tutus."

Missy grinned "Dennis told you about those shows on Netflix didn't he? Have you seen any of us running around in tutus in school? We might wear one for a performance but they actually help, keep your butt covered and further the illusion. Or can be used to tease a bit. The history of them is really, sort of, sordid. In the underwear was crotchless back in the day way. Plus, you are going to need something Babe. If you dance in that, like that, the shows will be R rated at least. We put someone else in the choreo and you are going to get an X. Shells and skirts are bad enough for spirit days, freeze your butt off. Now sit down and let's get you in these. It will take a while to break them in and the easy ways are some techniques that will help get you ready for pointe work."

Taylor frowned "Spirit days? I have to wear one of those cheerleader suits? Wait today is a spirit day!"

"Those abs and boobs? Dat ass? Dem stems?" Missy grinned at her "Probably not a crop body suit, the teachers would lose their minds with the kids not able to pay attention. Maybe when you are a little more adventurous, for the spring sports, and Disney of course."

"I have to cheer?" Missy rolled her eyes.

Amy meanwhile was going down a line of dancers who had flopped on the floor and put their feet in the air looking at her expectantly. She snorted and grabbed the first ankle she came to. She looked at the guys "Well get down there as well, Girls aren't the only ones who do pointe work."

Vicky and Crystal jumped to the floor and stuck their feet up at the end of the line of boys. Amy gave them each a slap on the calf. She had already done enhancements to them. Their diets showed it if nothing else. Crystal had gotten her wish, she could, and did, eat anything. Amy was using the same carbon reinforcing thing on the dancers. The freshmen girls were just getting old enough to start point work, only a couple had been judged to have hard enough bones to start by their doctors before now.

Amy went through the rest of the work out with everyone else, an easy one for this first get together, aside from Taylor and Vicky who were working pretty hard, Taylor to learn, Vicky to get back in the groove. Vicky wanted her principle dancer slot back. Co-captain with Missy if she could arrange it. Amy was humming and occasionally singing 'we fell in love in a hopeless place. The girls were grinning at her.

Titanfall

Danny stuck his head in the studio and blinked "Uh, BT?"

"I have two drones on the way to the store Danny as well as two more joining the normal staff. The baths of both VIP suites are prepared.

"There is apparently a Cheer and Dance parents group that shares cost. They get deals on both food and clothing. I have taken the liberty of contacting them using your name via email."

Danny nodded "And when we aren't here anymore? I mean Taylor could use the gym here but the rooms are booked right?"

"I have made some changes to the design of the basement and house. It will be fine. Taking it all the way to the lot line was beneficial. The young people are apparently used to communal shower facilities and changing areas, Locker rooms. I have put in two."

"And under the street, Jorgensen's house, the street on his side. I've stepped it off, and unless you are like Vista you aren't fooling anyone. And if they are gay?"

"They are going to have to work it out on their own, as they have in the past Danny. Most of this group has been together for years now. I do not think it will be a problem."

"Okay. We'll see. I'll go supervise breakfast."

"The coffee is brewing and the flat screens tuned to Channel five."

Titanfall

Amy glared at Song Kim. Taylor huffed and pulled her chair at the island where they were eating closer with a foot. "What?" She asked across the neural net.

Amy growled then answered in the same way "Little Hussy was sticking her face in your hoo hoo, or as close as she could get, back when you said she was. The only reason she went out is because of you! I thought she was going to eat you alive when you were in that towel dealing with your hair! I'm not even going to talk about her squeezing the shower gel bottle so hard shower gel hit the ceiling when you stepped out of that shower stall!"

"So she went out for the team for a girl who wasn't on the team, or even in the school, at the time, her tiger mom putting her in ballet when she was two had nothing to do with it." Taylor snarked a bit in the net.

"I know!"

Taylor waited patiently. She got no glimmer of Amy even acknowledging the sarcasm. She smiled hugely. Amy was on fire with jealousy. Then she sobered, Amy was on fire with jealousy and had the ability to make Song a human torch. The plan was right there in her head, on the neural net, something. Plus, there was some choreography that had Song being the younger sister as they danced out something like the little match girl. It would be a tear jerker. Of course as the older dead sister, or mom, maybe aunt, fairy godmother? Anyway Taylor was supposed to do several lifts and get used like a climbing frame by the hyper excited to see her again protagonist of the piece, Song Kim. The Operator fan club president, or dictator, of Arcadia. Who apparently had a huge crush and looked at the internet way too much. She was probably the illustrator? Author? Anyway she probably did most of the risqué outfits on the dress up app. She at least knew where they were. She had already done every possible cheer and dance uniform on the app. Taylor sighed.

BT said "With great power comes great responsibility."

"Spider-Man? At breakfast? Really? And the power to hypnotize a girl in puberty is your fault, you gave Amy the blueprints for Operator. You turn your psyops programming on and give me a plan to deal with this without Song Kim becoming a torch, or a frog, or Amy going to the Birdcage!" Everyone perked up when Gangnam Style started playing from phones and thin solid surfaces. Taylor mentally arched a brow.

BT sighed "Fine." Gangnam style finished and Call Me Maybe came up. Taylor started mentally tapping her foot with her fist on her hips.

BT was dealing with Dragon snickering in the background and not paying attention. Dragon outright laughed when Taylor lit into him.

Danny watched knowing something was happening but he waited patiently. The kids left in a swirling herd and he looked at the drone that normally accompanied him "So?"

"The Advocate is jealous of one of the potential partners for Operators dances."

"Wow, formal titles, your life sucks my friend."

"As Dragon has gleefully informed me."

"Teased her about Armsmaster didn't you?"

"Unfortunately."

"Well come on then, we'll talk on the way to work. It will probably work out, maybe start looking for a group of healers that can turn whichever girl back from a frog, or is it a toad. I can never tell the difference. Henni is afraid of Amy too. No idea why, she wouldn't do that. Hey did you ever investigate Bonesaw? If you found her, maybe she could do it? Of course you would have to reprogram her." Danny grinned.

"I will have her localized soon. I have Heartbreaker localized."

The grin slid off Danny's face "No distracting." He got a determined look "So how long a road trip is it? I mean overnight or what? No wait, you deal with the Advocate first. Barbara and Lacey might have some advice, we will have to propose it as a hypothetical though. Maybe get Kurt to do it."

Titanfall

"Emily, is there something you want to tell us?"

Emily blinked at the camera on the 1300 daily conference call "Uh, no?"

The Director from Jasper snorted "Let me show you a picture." A image came on the screen of what was obviously Bonesaw strapped on the back of a Clark Bot like it was a pack mule, Its centaur like portion was upright with a cowboy hat and vest on. It was also wearing a gun belt with a pair of tied down wingman elites in holsters and a familiar looking rifle across its back, a wildly outsize rifle. It had obviously just come from an altercation, it was fairly scuffed up. "This Clark bot wandered through town this morning. Just after dawn, right past the coffee shop. Please note the spurs. The videos have sound, you can hear them jingling. Nice boots."

Emily sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose "I have no idea."

Jasper nodded "Just wondering where to send the bounty actually. We back trailed it and found the Nine, or five of them, scattered over a hundred miles of back road. Along with Doctor Manton. He might have been the target of their attack actually, the Clark Bot apparently interrupted them. Crawler couldn't survive a maser, or several, evidence points to several of the ball drones, we think, and some kind of ball drone we haven't seen before, it's a plasma bomb it looks like. Somewhere around ten kilotons yield. Bit over kill, but hey, it got the job done and didn't leave radiation traces, just glass. Some of it is really pretty. Probably got a tourist attraction between the glass patches and the shadow things, like Hiroshima, on vertical surfaces. It's a county road so the government is happy. We thought it was a thunderstorm out in the badlands. He was the last of them, the first we got to. About thirty miles from town.

"Wendigo got her medicine men, and women, and forted up on the reservation and we can't get them to come out. They want assurances the Horse Spirit won't turn the sun on them."

"We lost the trail of the Clark Bot as well, thought you should know."

'Rebecca' Meredith nodded "That accounts for the known living members of the Nine, Burnscar, Shatter Bird, Jack, Hatchet Face, and Mannequin. The Siberian is the only one unaccounted for."

Emily chuckled ruefully "Aside from Bonesaw. Who is in the hands of a psychological warfare specialist?"

Director Armstrong cleared his throat "Who already has contact with Panacea. Perhaps he sees some synergy. Besides, if he isn't successful I can't think of anywhere better for Bonesaw to be. Or anything better to happen to her. If she makes a move on Panacea, or Operator, I suspect we will never see her again. Someone else will get a new tourist attraction."

Emily gaped at him "You are proposing leaving a twelve year old in the hands of a killing machine."

"Alleged killing machine, looking back over the records BT has not killed anyone, neither has Operator."

Tagg of all people spoke up next "Those psyops people are monsters. You can't leave a child in his care. Alleged care."

Director Heathrow shrugged "We left her in the care of the Nine for six years. I think we can wait until Emily can make the appropriate enquiries?"

Emily tapped her ear "BT?"

Everyone heard "Director Piggot? How may I help you?"

"Did you take Bonesaw and eliminate the Nine?"

"I require Bonesaw, or Riley, as an instrument to a backup plan of some urgency. An individual, female, black and white stripes, naked, ninety eight percent match to the Siberian, objected. I was forced to kill her master. The remainder of the group he was following, the Slaughter House Nine, though there were only seven of them total, objected to both. They unsuccessfully pressed their objection."

Director Tagg asked sharply "So you executed them?"

"All of the persons I engaged were subject to kill orders. Though in the case of the Siberian it will possibly require further adjudication as she was a projection of Dr. Manton's master ability."

Emily had her head in her hands "And you have video no doubt?"

"Full evidentiary procedures were followed Director, I am sending the unedited footage to the Liaison now."

Emily typed rapidly on a separate laptop while asking "And Bonesaw?"

"Will be reeducated."

"Programmed to be a BT bomb you mean!" Tagg sprayed spittle at the screen.

"I still require her as the backup."

Meredith muted everyone else "Backup to what BT?"

Twenty minutes later, with Tagg confined to M/S procedures and his deputy sitting in, Meredith summarized "So Panacea is dating Taylor Hebert. They have both joined a dance team, there is a girl on the team that is infatuated with Operator and is using Taylor Hebert as a stand in for her, as are most of the people on the internet. You judged that Panacea would take steps if the girl was to press her case too far. You went off and got the only bio tinker your research told you might be able to restore the girl, Bonesaw. In order to mitigate the damage and keep Panacea out of the Birdcage."

"Correct Chief Director."

It was Meredith's turn to pinch the bridge of her nose "And it never occurred to you to talk to Operator about any of this? In fact she is at pract- erh, the range."

The answer came slowly "Correct Chief Director. However Lacey and Barbara both said they would turn whoever tried to get their romantic partner to betray them inside out. Or some other things that would be impossible to correct without parahuman intervention. Panacea has the ability and Bonesaw could undo it. Panacea is required for the health and stability of Operator. I could retrieve her from the Birdcage should she decide to allow herself to be put there, however it would be impolitic."

"Lacey Chabet, the former Lustrum enforcer?" Rebecca, Alexandria, arched a brow.

Director Armstrong snorted "I think we can skip the dissimulation, we are the leadership of the PRT and Protectorate, I think everyone has figured out Taylor Hebert is Operator. This is the downside of Become One, I think. The issue is how do we deal with this? Glenn is going to have a hell of press release to write.

"Next Bonesaw needs to be evaluated, your prognosis and treatment plan discussed with experts we know, before you just deprogram, then reprogram, the child. If in fact she can be considered a child in the expert's opinion. Not that we don't trust you after Yamada's endorsement, but this is Bonesaw we are talking about. Next if she is going to stay under your control, Emily will have to come up with some kind of way to get her in the Wards.

"Finally, the award on the Nine is in the middle nine digit range, that won't stay unknown. You are going to have a press problem."

"I'll resign first. BT has her, she is Operators problem, with supervision of course." Emily announced firmly. The meeting took off again with sixty eight directors or their deputies along with the associated Protectorate leadership, all trying to be heard.

Titanfall

Carol and Sarah looked at Legend, Alexandria and Rebecca Costa Brown. Danny still had his face in his hands and his shoulders were still shaking. Carol snapped "This is the farthest thing from funny! Her father is Marquis!"

Danny lifted his head "So you raising her doesn't win out over her genes? What rock have you been hiding under? You all have that Master Stranger thing Taylor told me about too. They haven't suddenly demanded her incarceration, which, I am given to understand, they have done a few times in other cases. They are PRT associates after all. I don't think Amy is going to act on any of those ideas, plus Taylor would stop her, she is already going to stop her when she gets over being thrilled about it anyway, since they can see into each other's heads, probably. Nobody wants an insanely jealous partner right? How Amy thinks she is hiding it I don't know. They are good kids. They are growing up. It happens."

Sarah nodded "Danny is right Carol. Hopefully Amy gets the message when Taylor gives it the first time or two, Remember how hard it was to deal with jealous boyfriends? I'm hoping jealous girlfriends are, smarter, maybe?"

Legend frowned "Not that I ever noticed, at least not in the community in my lifetime."

Alexandria sighed "So we are spending millions of dollars and hours of time on teen drama."

Emily shrugged "Wards, not the first time parahumans have had personal issues. They will survive. I would be willing to bet they would survive without our, or your, intervention BT.

"That's all water under the bridge, spilt milk, whatever you want to call it. Thankfully that Operator drone was on the video, albeit in the background on a rooftop, and Taylor was in front of a whole school of witnesses. Who can only talk about her making the Cheer and Dance squad, some quite snidely. According to the Wards, how did she get a cheer shell and skirt that fast? Never mind, it's probably level four and the sequins shoot masers. Do not make the pom poms wingmen. We need to discuss you bomb drones as well.

"How did you pull that video off, the technical people tell me that is real unedited footage? Can they fly? Or do you have more than one? If anything this solidifies her identity. Now, who is Bone- erh, Riley going to live with?"

All the parents spluttered and waved their hands palm out. Danny got a look and stopped. "BT can you, uh, fix her? I mean this is a little girl who has been traumatized for years?"

"I would prefer not discussing operational details Director. I can reprogram her Danny. It could be as simple as downloading her and wiping Bonesaw during the process." BT announced.

Dragon blinked in the monitor she was appearing in "You actually could couldn't you?"

"The wipe would be a bit imprecise, it might take some of her memories from just before her encounter with the Nine. Say from three to six months before."

Legend nodded "And a story could be crafted that she was a survivor who triggered in a joint trigger with Bonesaw but was in a coma until Bonesaw met her demise at the hands of BT, then it could go anywhere Glenn's imagination takes it."

Danny shook his head "Taylor isn't going to let you make BT a child killer."

The group looked at BT who did his rolling nod in the ball drone "Correct, Operator is at some pains to avoid killing at all."

Sarah chimed in "Thank you God."

Alexandria shrugged "Sham trial, fake Birdcaging, or real trial and remanding her to Operators custody so she can work off her debt, the Othala model."

Jessica Yamada spoke up from her monitor "As a last resort that plan works, with refinements, or as the base of a refined plan. First we need to try more traditional methods. We should know fairly quickly if they work or not. She is in the room next to Svetas. The same people who paid for that hermetically sealed, armored, environment, paid for a backup. I will work with Riley. BT you are welcome to assist as you have a growing presence at the sanitarium."

Meredith nodded "I'll assign a strike team, three maybe, to the sanatorium. It has needed more attention for a while. I'm not worried about her escaping so much as people's reactions should it become known who Riley is. They can patrol the edges of the grounds and not appear inside the property except in emergencies."

Dragon nodded "BT and I can fake a coma victim story. It works either way really as this is not going to be instantaneous and she was unconscious when last seen."

BT sighed, they all blinked "The Advocate will need to prepare Bonesaw to be Riley, she has made several modifications to herself. Some of them are, dangerous to others, failsafe's and things of that nature. She also has genetic material other than her own stored in her person."

Danny shook his head "It never rains but it pours."

"I fail to understand what table salt has to, oh."

Dragon blinked "Is your cooling functioning properly BT?"

"Yes, plus, I am bringing another server online now."

Titanfall

Sveta looked at the monitor, which contained a lost looking young girl's face. "So, Riley."

Bonesaw nodded "You are fascinating. Case 53?"

Sveta actually blushed. She looked at the pink ball drone floating in the corner of her space draped in tentacles. She huffed when it simply looked back.


	22. Chapter 22

Titanfall 22

"What? I what? What?"

Missy looked at the current principle sophomore dancer and arched a brow. Song thrashed around mentally for a moment more then huffed "Fine, but only as a, an, I didn't, there is no way to say this without sounding like a hussy."

Missy nodded "Glad you at least recognize that. You are using a bio tinkers girlfriend as a stand in for the biggest crush you have ever had. If you rub your little cooch on her one more time that bio tinker is going to turn you into a frog. All of which is aside from the fact that it is fucking up your dance. Do I need to put Melissa in? Your freshman understudy doesn't seem to have personal issues."

Song blushed ferociously "I'm not grinding on her! Her holds are different. Stronger, she has a lot of control of me, especially lifted, she will get it though, I've never seen anyone pick up things so fast. She just needs to relax a little and let me do my part. It's like she wants control of the whole thing and it makes it look mechanical like that." She waved at the monitor. "A few more iterations and she will get it, you can already see it getting smoother. She just has to learn to trust me to do my part."

Missy nodded "And this right here? What is that?" She pointed at the screen "Your legs are shaking."

Song blushed again "She has very strong, big, hands."

Missy sighed "Well, maybe you will be a cute frog. Again." She announced much louder than the hushed ass chewing she had just given Song. She watched as Taylor took the towel off her neck and stepped out on the floor from the mirrored wall.

Amy stepped up to her "I won't turn her into a frog. It is a great dance and will be awe inspiring. I trust Taylor."

Missy didn't look at her, instead watching Taylor and Song go through it again with Melissa watching attentively, waiting on her turn with Taylor next. Johnson was wriggling around trying to get used to the leotard. He was Taylor's understudy, How they were going to keep his five o'clock shadow from showing, and get him used to a tutu, who the fuck knew? Although they could redo it for him to be the dead brother maybe, fairy godfather? That had some comedy potential, they might do that one for kids anyway.

Missy smirked "Pissed her off huh?"

Amy blushed. Taylor had been amused, indulgent, then exasperated when Taylor had asked if she trusted her. "Yes, now that's better. I trust Taylor, the problem is I dont trust anybody else at all."

Missy was looking at the pair dancing "You know Song is madly in love with Operator."

Amy grimaced "And we both know what's going to happen when she finds out."

Missy glanced at her and chuckled "I had to file the paperwork. We listed her as a parahuman, it doesn't require more than that."

"And when she dances masked? You don't think Song will catch a clue and come all over her palm again? Little witch gets more sex from Taylor than I do."

"Oh Taylor is going to love knowing she is a sex toy for Song." Missy grinned "Maybe you should take the Combi and do something about that?"

"Oh I plan too. How is it that Melissa doesn't have this problem?"

"Meh, it's all Song, probably next week she won't have this problem. You know how it goes. Hormones. I called a couple friends, apparently that palm lift is normally done by involved couples or those that are very secure in relationships outside their dance partners, both partners I mean. I knew that, Song was right though, it makes that movement of the piece. I thought Song was a little more about Operator. She has totally dismissed Taylor from that."

Amy gaped at her "Except as a visual aide for jilling." She looked back at the dance, listening to the absolutely soul crushing music as the little match girl froze to death, then the swelling cresendo as sister Taylor came in scene, then wiped her eyes "It is beautiful though."

Titanfall

Riley bounced in her seat looking at Doctor Yamada. Jessica sighed "Yes the experts say with Panacea's help this could in fact put Sveta in a normal body."

Riley grinned "BT being the expert and Panacea growing a body."

Jessica looked at her "And Operator being the gate keeper, making the decision, based on our recommendations, that you are ready to do this. Plus the PRT concurring, last but not least, Sveta agreeing."

"Yay! Operator loves me, she saved me. I can't do anything for Weld, not a welder, get it? Got any more volunteers?"

Jessica pinched the bridge of her nose. Riley was a ball of energy they were just barely keeping interested by feeding her the files of every case fifty three they had a file on, while they waited on Panacea coming to disarm her. They had to keep her in a paper scrub suit in her cell after they caught her weaving fibers into a tools preparing to start working on herself. She had been unable to get the ball drone staying in her cell apart. Though she did talk to it nearly constantly.

All that aside from her transferring all of her, well, issues, onto Operator rather than Jack Slash.

Titanfall

Emily asked, somewhat warily, "BT, anything I need to know before the daily meeting?"

"Not about me Director. I agreed to keep you informed and give you advanced warning. You personally."

Emily nodded "Yes, I'm still working on updating the LEO liaison systems as is Armsmaster."

BT replied "I have noticed, the order for chipsets, processors, and memory has been given high priority by both myself and Dragon."

Emily nodded "Thank you." She entered her password and the warning screen came up. She clicked the acknowledgement block and the teleconference started.

Titanfall

"Amy?"

Amy pulled Taylor onto the floor "BT is going to take us both through the dance. I'm going to be observing, I want to figure out why Song has that problem."

Taylor blushed furiously "I'm doing it correctly!"

"I know you are Babe, In the first place it wasn't you doing it the first five times it was BT. In the second place I talked to Melissa. She just shrugged, and blushed. Then she told me its kind of scary."

Taylor frowned "OK, lets do this." They were back in the gym, it was late in the evening, Amy had been working on trying to figure it out all day. While they talked, including through visits to two hospitals for emergent cases, She had touched both Song and Melissa enough to have them memorized. While human bodies were similar they were also vastly different.

They went through it and Amy called "Stop!" BT froze them both with her sitting, or lying, on Taylors palm arched as she was supposed to be. Her eyes tried to roll up in her head as she panted. "OK." Taylor tossed her softly and then caught her, letting her roll down her front to a princess carry. Amy shuddered through the rest of the orgasm then wrapped her arms around Taylors neck and locked her lips to hers. Taylor let her slide across her front and Amy stood on her tiptoes maintaining the kiss.

When Amy broke the kiss Taylor asked "Amy?"

"If it wasn't for these armored panties you would have had me like a six pack." She pulled Taylor's hand to herself and looked at it then positioned it on herself with her feet on the floor. Taylor having been forced to squat in front of her to get her hand turned and positioned correctly. "Lift." Taylor looked in her eyes a moment then put her other hand up and Amy gripped it. Taylor picked her up from the floor and held her about shoulder height "You are cupping my mons, you fingers are extended back over my labia If I was nude your middle fingers could very easily be buried in me. Its really getting a bit uncomfortable now-" She smiled as Taylor put her down swiftly "With all my weight smashing my button into the heal of your hand." She wrapped her arms around Taylors head and stepped into her riding her to the floor. Then she locked her lips to Taylors.

Some time Later Amy was laying on the floor in kind of a puddle with Taylor beside her putting her hands on her. Amy was a bit frustrated "Babe, what are you doing? I mean, I know we haven't gone this far to now but you have the same equipment?"

Taylor chuckled and turned her hand the other way again "Trying to figure it out, apparently there is a variation they use in ice skating where my fingers would be like this and my thumb like this."

Amy moaned "Oh my god! Taylor!" She curled around Taylors hand as Taylor took a firm grip. Taylor eased up and Amy pulled her down again. After a few minutes Amy leaned back and grinned "So, you can never do that to Song or we will never get rid of her. Well maybe later, Once we get to the point where you give me orgasms like that when we are naked."

Taylor blinked "I dont see how that does that."

Amy nodded and shook her head as she slid onto Taylor astride "I don't either, but now that we know that it does we can figure it out." She waggled her eyebrows.

Taylor grinned "Bedroom?"

Amy blushed "Uh, I was thinking here, I don't think I'm ready for my armor to be off."

Taylor sat up and kissed her, then somehow picked her up and got her sat on a hip. Amy moaned "This comes before that lift, no wonder. Oh my god you have the best hip bones ever. I'm going to have to check Melissa she must be broken. You can't just cavewoman me you know, do I need my legion?"

Taylor blushed as she carried Amy out and to the elevator. "We only had the gym booked for an hour Babe." That 'Babe' melted Amy onto her.

Titanfall

At eight Amy parked her legion and hopped out walking into the Hospital to check while she was on her way home. The Nurses in the emergency room watched her for a minute as she bounced through, touching everyone, then looked at each other and grinned. The Floor nurse called the children's ward, then OB, and finally the ICU. In this hospital the ICU covered the burn ward as well.

Amy was home by nine. Vicky looked at her and grinned after floating into her room "So...spill!"

Amy blushed "Its the grip. I may have to apologize to Song. I definitely have to check Melissa, she must be broken some how. The first one was a bit of a surprise. I sort of expected it to hurt really. But after that, well it just kept happening no matter what we did. Although I found out that her doing that carry you on her hip part is probably contributing. Those five steps are right before the lift too."

Vicky whipped out her phone "dun, dun, dun, dun, dun bam and boom shackalacka. OK yeah." She poked at it for a minute more then grinned "I dont think you have to talk to Melissa, well maybe to figure out how to keep on dancing with no noticeable effect other than a come flush."

Amy snatched the phone "What?" She backed the video up and watched closer, sure enough right when she knew it happened to her Melissa's chest flushed "Why that little ho!"

Vicky grinned "Taylor is a playa!"

Amy snorted "She didn't even realize."

Vicky grinned "Got a little loud did you?"

"We had the locked gym to ourselves." Amy huffed. Vicky rolled on the bed laughing. "You can't say anything!"

"Of course I won't. Now what are we going to do about it? I mean Melissa is pretty good, she could still be better, Song could be worlds better and get an offer off of this."

Amy flopped back on the bed "We did it probably fifty times. Just the piece leading to the lift and the exit of the lift. We tried two different hand positions." She blushed "The other one is worse."

Vicky was looking at her with her mouth open, she snapped it closed "How are you walking around?"

Amy blinked "Uh, my augments, and Taylor fed me. Lots of water, Well BT, but you know. Oh! No, it got better-"

"Worse I would say."

"Horn dog, it was still right there you know, but we got good enough to keep it down to a dull roar. Well, us and BT."

"So a threesome?"

Amy gave her a glare "You aren't immune from living in a pond."

Vicky grinned at her. "So are Song and Melissa going to be able to get it? I mean you are augmented. They aren't, and neither one of them have enough body fat for you to augment them subtlety."

Amy sighed "I already did sort of, when I fixed those poor ugly feet, it will take longer and they will eat like horses for a few years. I've been meaning to talk to Missy, I need to brief everyone."

Vicky frowned "You do it to everyone now don't you?"

Amy shook her head "Not the criminals that BT identifies."

Vicky frowned "And when one of the kids turns criminal?"

Amy shrugged "They only get one more number than the ones the viri are doing? Mostly."

Vicky groaned "So my job is harder then. I was out patrolling with the wards while you were making like a lioness, we thought some of those were tougher. Works out for me, I don't or won't have to call you so much. Vista just indiscriminately foams everyone. Taylor created a monster there. We thought the ones who act out were a bit more erh, something."

"Hey wait a minute, we saw Operator, hell we talked to her? I was surprised when you weren't home"

Her drone spoke up "So that is improving then, thank you. I have had to give the Operator drones nearly full clones of Taylors neural net."

Vicky nodded "Yeah, they are damn good. Amy will have to test one."

"Stop it."

Vicky grinned "So Imp and Pelter?"

Amy blinked "Who?"

Vicky looked at her "Two new girls running around with Operator, or an Operator drone rather. In full pilot gear."

Amy was trolling thorough her drone "Oh, so they stayed with those names. OK. Bring them to the gym in the morning BT. I'll start their augments."

Titanfall

Aisha looked around the gym blearily. Katherine chuckled "So this is why you dont like school, not a morning person at all."

"Please Katy, its not morning its still night. Oh hey OP." Taylor had walked up. Amy with her.

"Taylor here, these girls, some of them don't even know I'm a parahuman."

Aisha shook her head and chuckled "Yeah, right." She looked Taylor up and down. "Sophomore, looks like Miss Universe, moves like a tiger in the wild. Has the parahuman healer being possessive. They don't know. We are going to have to work on their situational awareness."

Katy laughed "Or not, remember the rules."

Aisha nodded slowly "So, meant to ask you yesterday, you got my brother in the joint, any chance for a visit? For me to visit him I mean." She eyed Panacea. Who still had possession of one of Taylors arms.

Taylor blinked "Uh, I don't have him there. The Undersiders surrendered to the PRT."

Aisha sighed "Yeah BT said. I thought maybe you had some influence?"

Taylor shrugged "I can introduce you to Gully?"

"Good enough, so what are we doing?"

Panacea answered "I'm setting up your augments, later we will have to do some more work and do a neural net connection for you. Depends on how you look today as to when."

Taylor nodded "Plus, we do dance for exercise."

Aisha chuckled, Katy laughed at her "Oh man, you are going to be so sorry. I got friends on the team at Imac. Those witches are all twisted steel and sex appeal."

Vicky had walked up "And callouses. Come on, lets get this show on the road."

In the shower later Katy got the bird from a shattered Aisha, who had gotten the bit between her teeth and decided this bunch of flat chested frufru white girls were not going to beat her. Katy smiled "Most of them have been doing this since they were like six, some even earlier, with professional coaches. Plus they have been going to school with Panacea the whole time and Victoria Dallon was a name in dance and cheer before she was a parahuman."

"Fucking hell."

Katy laughed

Out in the gym Song took her turn. She made it all the way through to the bow, or curtsy in this case, then collapsed when Missy nodded. Panacea hauled her to her feet and smacked her on the butt after shoving her toward the door. She blushed furiously.

Melissa stepped up calmly. Panacea touched her neck and then the music started. She got a slap on the butt at the end as well. She walked like a robot to the showers.

Missy arched a brow "Well that needs a little more work, what did you do, delay it all?" Vicky nodded with an eyebrow arched.

Amy nodded "But apparently it made a kind of feedback loop. I think they are just going to have to get used to it naturally. Come on Taylor and we will go through the whole piece one time." She took the red faced Taylors hand.

Missy shrugged and worked the tablet that controlled the audio, the music came in and she watched amazed. At the end she nodded "Or just replace them with you Amy, damn, where did that come from, not trying to be mean but you were always corps before."

Amy turned her head from where it was buried in Taylors chest and shrugged "Augments maybe." She pushed her self back to her own feet and Taylor relaxed her grip a bit.

Missy nodded "I got a friend, she was the captain when I started, She is the principle dancer in Boston, I want her to try this piece. See if she can give us any help. She is married and has a kid. So I think she is pretty secure."

"Carmen? Yeah if anybody her. She married Billy the week after they graduated. You know, we could just drop the curtain while Taylor holds whoever like she did Amy, give them a minute. It isn't going to look right with Amy being the alleged preteen, she is five eight and growing."

Missy nodded "And if it happens with Johnson?"

Taylor tossed in "Change it to a hand lift. We are already changing the piece for the godfather anyway."

Missy nodded thoughtfully and led them toward the elevator, she showered in the penthouse "Change of subject, Katy from Immaculata, Aisha from Winslow, and Missy Byron from University Middle school. They are all going to raise hell. They have teams. Missy will be in Arcadia next year so not so bad with her, but, the others?"

Taylor shrugged "A community team, BT is apparently going to have at least eleven."

Amy spoke up "Ten."

Missy asked "At least?"

Titanfall

Emily looked at her computer monitor. Sally Sato, Bakuda, suddenly wanted to come in from the cold. "Why?"

Armsmaster and Dragon looked at each other, well, Armsmaster looked at the monitor with Dragon occupying it. Emily snorted "BT any thoughts?"

"The ABB has given up trafficking. The establishments that cater to the sex trade they have maintained are worked by women who at least marginally want to be there."

"And you suddenly gained a work force. And filled two reconditioned low rent housing projects."

"As well as filing asylum applications, many asylum applications." Armsmaster added.

Dragon smiled "H1 A visa applications as well."

Emily nodded "So Bakuda thinks she is going to have to fill multiple rolls in the organization?"

"Kenta Tanaka has a daughter attending Arcadia. Sally Suzuki. He has never been married."

Emily was suddenly very focused "And you know this how?"

"Threat analysis. Plus my ongoing search for pilots. She is a parahuman, second generation. Her power set is related to her fathers, except, I think more so than his. She travels on the weekend, usually to isolated places that then report massive damage from electrical storms."

Emily sighed "With anecdotal reports of a gigantic silver dragon in the storm clouds."

Armsmaster was manipulating data with the keypad in his armors forearm "Yes, I see the connections, tenuous as they are, she was scheduled for observation and possible contact by the Wards. She is a Sophmore at Arcadia, on the dance and cheer team, excellent grades. We had not connected her to Lung."

Emily nodded "So Lung likes to have a girl from the old country, he is out of those. He did however get Bakuda out of jail before she could even be charged." She narrowed her eyes "And your interest in her is?"

"Her one time use repeatable energetic initiation processes."

"Not as a pilot?"

"I do not believe she has the temperament. She will be difficult at best."

Emily nodded "At best. So the correctional facility or the birdcage."

Armsmaster cleared his throat "She actually hasn't killed anyone. If she can undo what she did she could possibly be salvaged."

BT interjected "Or she could become a resident of the asylum."

Dragon nodded "I think we will have to bring her in first. Lung is not going to like this."

"Panacea will remind him that there are culturally appropriate courtship practices that are acceptable." BT supplied.

Emily laughed "Operator is going to short circuit you. Meanwhile, Sally Suzuki?"

"Will be an excellent pilot, along with Sarah Livesey and Rachel Lindt. I am currently evaluating Theo Anders. Also Cassandra Herren."

Dragon asked "And you don't mind telling us as we have control, at least for a time, of three of those and the other is a known figure, locally at least."

"And not a known parahuman, plus he hasn't even been approached yet. Once the approach is made, well, details of pilots should be at least as classified as parahumans."

Emily nodded "So Iron man, a millionaire playboy philanthropist?" She needed to inject a little levity as this meeting was making her clear her calendar for the morning. Getting information from BT was always the long game. Other than the tantalizing broad strokes.

"Definitely not." They all smiled at the offended tone.

Titanfall

Dennis looked around at lunch "Oh thank god." Carlos arched a brow. "Not a spirit day, I nearly hurt myself the last one we had. Taylor in that skirt should be illegal."

Consuela snorted "But girls run around here in yoga pants all day?"

Vicky looked at her and made the throat cutting motion. Dennis started his normal routine and Consuela looked at Carlos "I was just in time, you owe me big time." Dennis looked offended. Especially when Carlos nodded.

Dean changed the subject, or tried "Chris is over with the geniuses again."

"Its so unfair."

Vicky rolled her eyes "Someone will make you a project like Lucy and Amanda have made Chris eventually. Senior year, after they have fixed all the others."

Consuela nodded "Group project though. So GG, back to dance, you need some Latin blood in that, add a little heat."

Vicky motioned with her hand "Come on, bring your posse, everyone is welcome."

Consuela looked at Carlos "We will be there, where and when?" Carlos paled. He didn't dance. At least he hadn't to now apparently. He looked up into Dennis's grinning face.

Titanfall

Taylor looked at the girl wrapped around her legs. Amy snorted and grabbed Riley's arm "Holy crap Riley! You are going to have to have a complete rebuild. I like this armor, but how is it supposed to grow with you?"

Taylor blinked as she was led by both hands to a couch in the cell. Amy on one side and Riley on the other. Riley waving Amy off "I was like six. I know better now, but you can fix it, then I want to introduce you to Sveta. She is fascinating."


	23. Chapter 23

Titanfall 23

Dennis looked around the gym, Carlos, the fucking rat bastard traitor, had sent a suggestion up the chain that all the Wards join the dance team as it would improve their athleticism. Beardmaster had done some research and concurred. So here he was, at ungodly thirty in the night, looking at a room full of naked women. Yes naked, those fucking body stockings, or whatever they were, didn't hide anything, you could count the hairs, or lack of them. Yoga pants were bad enough but this was out of control "You get used to it Dude. Besides they still decide who does what with who. If one picks you out consider yourself lucky and be respectful." Neil Johnson ground his fist into his open palm holding both low down with his back turned to the girls.

Dennis snorted "Glory Girl is right there Dude. Not saying anything, but you got nothing on her, or Taylor… good god I am going to die." Taylor had stepped in the room in her normal sprayed on sports bra and yoga shorts. Neil laughed. Dennis gaped as Missy Byron came in dressed like Taylor, where had she gotten those boobs? Oh, god! That perfect round butt! Gah! No toe touching stretches! Holy Mary, mother of god, pray for us now at the hour of our death, he closed his eyes.

A bit away Consuela left her group of four other girls and came over. She tiptoed up and kissed Carlos. "Good boy. Now come on, we are going to show these witches some heat."

"Uh, I don't dance,"

"Oh you will."

After they were all exhausted from the dance battle, or whatever that had been, the girls had waged, and they watched as Taylor, Song, Melissa and Amy went through the routine, then as Johnson did it in a different way, while some of the girls tortured them at the bar. Dennis had never been so glad of jock straps and baggy gym shorts in his life. Although he might need a cup "Hey Dean, what do you think about a cup?"

Julie snorted "Pull your hips into line and we won't knee you in the junk."

Chris piped up "And it keeps your musculature and skeletal system in line, makes it easier." Lucy and Amanda petted him. Dennis shot him a glare, which, if he had been a different type of parahuman, might have killed.

Dennis grunted "And after school we have to run the torture course."

Dean blinked "Uh well we uh-" Julie gave him a look, Lucy and Amanda giggled. Dean face palmed.

Julie nodded "We aren't idiots. Oh, which reminds me, we have to talk to Katy and Aisha, see if any of theirs are 'different'. I know most of the Empire ones go to Imac. Or went there. The church and Nazi's you know? Plus private so 'exclusive'."

Dennis closed his mouth which had dropped open "Wut."

Julie looked at him "We can talk about it while you walk me to school." The other girls grinned. Dennis looked at Johnson across the room who was grinding his fist in his palm again. He nodded. Dean face palmed as Chris grinned.

Titanfall

Emily looked at the reports, then looked up at Armsmaster and Miss Militia. Gully snorted "They are children, not idiots. All the Wards teams have this problem, or at least the ones I know of. It's especially bad here because you have concentrated all the Wards in one school. A school with a well populated thinker program, and out parahumans in it. Not that you had much choice. The county school maybe, but it is a bit far out, and usually doesn't get kids from in the city limits. Probably more of problem here in the northeast with these huge schools. Three and four thousand kids? How do they even teach? Nearly two hundred teachers and staff, but still."

Armsmaster started to reply but Emily raised her hand "As you say Gully, it's the local conditions, this is the best we could do."

Miss Militia nodded "It does prove the Wards here are well accepted. The others know or suspect, with great accuracy, who they are and nothing has been said after all."

Emily turned to Tattletale in the monitor on the wall. "What? Oh yeah, that. Don't even need captain obvious really. Unwritten rules, plus it's a felony to out Protectorate parahumans and you guys don't fuck around with that shit. The gangs don't either when their people get outed.

"Important subject, Bakuda, seriously? The bitch can make bombs out of spit and dirt. You want to put her in here to get her post graduate work in criminality done?"

Gully chuckled "Well we could start a program but none of you are doing that, unless there is something you aren't telling us?"

Lisa paled "Uh, no, boss. At least not that I know of. But correctional institutions have that reputation for a reason. Oh! That's why the separate cells! Hey cool, very smart."

"Don't oversell it Tattletale."

Everyone chuckled at the pout that got.

Emily nodded "Bakuda being there is a risk, However she will be transported to a lab and over seen by Armsmaster, Dragon and BT every day. She will only be sleeping and doing PT and her indoctrination classes at the barracks."

Tattletale shook her head "She needs to go through the whole program, be on teams and everything. BT can keep a murder ball on her. That's her problem now, she isn't socialized. Thinks she is the smartest person in the room, any room. I can't wait until she runs into Operator. She is essentially an orphan too, plus not being good with people, so no support network."

Emily arched a brow "Murder ball?"

"The drones that have the plasma cannons."

Emily looked at the ball drone in the office "Those are actually personal defensive detail drones Director. They aren't very 'smart', the space being taken up by the cannon and the targeting package. Usually they work with a drone that is essentially a bomb, they provide the targeting for it. Normally they operate in stealth mode continuously. I currently only have them assigned to what I estimate to be high priority targets who are not pilots.

"All of the ocular sensors are capable of mazer fire however. It would be effective against up to brute threes. However it is limited by power capacity.

"The body guard sets sacrifice some processing capacity for increase power capacity."

Emily nodded "So pilots families then."

"Correct."

"If we did want to run Bakuda through the whole program could you sell us a few of those, and a maintenance contract for them? Or for other parahumans on a longer leash, like work release?" Lisa gulped. Everyone else chuckled.

"I could director. They are relatively simple machines. I can send Dragon the schematics, a license, for a fee."

Miss Militia nodded "So you obviously have a way to detect and disable technology like yours."

"I am a war machine who was designed to fight other war machines using the same technology."

"Let's do that then. I'll talk to the Chief Director about it. Next item. Riley nee Bonesaw." Emily pressed a button and Dr Yamada appeared on a monitor.

"Good morning. Panacea is doing a complete rebuild of Riley and is removing any trace of foreign DNA, along with her other built in dead man type defenses, has already removed it and them actually. Riley is enamored of both Operator and Panacea. In her view Panacea is a big sister figure and Operator, as Panacea's partner, an aunt, definitely an authority figure."

Groans went up in the conference room. Dr Yamada nodded "This is perhaps helpful however."

Emily nodded "But it takes the PRT and Protectorate out of the loop. Especially if Operator and Panacea come to view Riley in the same way. Even with rebranding, and changing her physical appearance, Riley can never be off a very short leash."

Dr Yamada shrugged "If she can ever leave here. Which remains to be seen."

Lisa nodded "Even with a murder ball, erh, PDD drone set."

BT added "She is unable to disassemble the drone assigned to her."

Armsmaster shook his head "So far. Riley is a high level Tinker, focused on surgical alterations to biology, but still a high level, broad focus, tinker."

"Working against her will be beneficial then."

Dragon chuckled and shook her head at Armsmaster's sour face.

Titanfall

"Don't roll your eyes at me Riley, who is the one that thought it was a good idea to put pockets of every disease in the world in herself? Just hold still and let me check you. And leave my girlfriend alone."

"Wow, no need to be a psycho about it, Aunty is too old for me anyway." Taylor very maturely stuck her tongue out at Riley. "Not for the girls on the dance squad though, nice one Aunty O. That little Asian one is losing IQ points. BT showed me. That dance though, so sad, even the happy ending. Well not her happy ending, that is pretty not sad." Riley grinned and tried to waggle her eyebrows.

Amy snorted "If those women were still alive I would turn them into frogs for teaching you this stuff."

"Late night TV in the motels really. Oh! Hey have you two-" Taylor put her hand over Riley's mouth and thanked all the gods for full face helmets, again.

Taylor removed her hand and Riley said "So not yet then. Am I going to have to give a class? When two ladies really like-" Taylor put her hand back. Which didn't stop Riley's sparkling eyes from showing or stop her shoulders from shaking. Until she pushed Taylors hand away and started spitting "Not funny sis, soap taste in my mouth, really? How did you even do that? Dial too!"

"Oh, so this isn't the first time you have been too big for your britches? Don't make me give you a time out."

"It's so unfair you can just turn people off with a touch. Hey, how are you going to do that from inside your legion? You know, we could build an organic pathway to its hands. Sveta's tentacles are strong as heck and nearly indestructible, like a super octopus."

Taylor watched as the two tinkers got into that with BT's help projecting 3D schematics. Sveta chimed in a time or two as well.

Dr Yamada watched the channel they were all on and shook her head. The other staff psychologist observing with her shrugged "Do two tinkers doing it on paper count as a fugue?"

Jessica laughed "This is going to go really well, or really badly."

Alan, the other psychologist tapped the screen where the ball droid was hovering "It won't go badly for long." Jessica looked at the red glowing optical sensor/maser and nodded. The droids had after all taken the Nine down and scared the shit out of the Simurgh.

Titanfall

Aisha looked at Gully "So he got time served and probation, plus community service. Where is he?"

Gully watched Shadow Stalker running the course. She flicked her eyes to where Rune was watching, or gloating, then looked at Aisha "Halfway house, in the compound, not the barracks."

"That fucking fuck." Aisha looked at Gully's frown and held her hands up palm out "OK, jeeze, sorry."

Gully looked at her watch "Shouldn't you be in school?"

Aisha pointed to her ear "I am, BT is home schooling me prepping me for placement test to Arcadia. Or mentally torturing me for twelve hours a day. Whichever."

Gully arched a brow "And how does he get you to be 'tortured'?"

"If I don't get good enough grades on the test I don't get to drive my legion and blow shit up. Literature, Little Women and shit, is the fucking worst."

Gully nodded "You know rap is poetry right?"

"Cultural reference ooooooh!" Aisha grinned at the glare she got.

Gully snorted "You are Operators problem, for now."

"OK, better." They were silent for a minute "The nazi is better, way to let down the side there Stalker."

Gully nodded "There can always be someone better. So what are you going to do about your brother?"

"Find him, kick him until he isn't stupid."

"In the compound, don't break shit and become my problem."

"Not a Parahuman."

Gully arched a brow

"Or my problem." Jessica added coming up behind the pair.

Aisha jumped about a foot then looked at the Deputy Director "Jeeze gang up on a sister why don't you." She looked at the looks she was getting. "Fine."

Deputy Director Rodriguez smiled tightly "Good. I thought the lawyers were working on Grue getting custody of you?"

"Like I need another supervisor, I already got Operator and BT watching me twenty four seven."

Jessica smiled "Just talk to your brother Miss Labron."

Aisha nodded and took off down the lane she had been waiting on.

Titanfall

Brian Labron, Grue trudged back toward the halfway house. He was working a legitimate job in OP industries, and going to school He stopped when it went quiet and the Titan stepped out of the shadow "Brian Labron."

"Uh, yes?"

"Where is your sister?"

"What, why are you asking me? She should be at my dad's house. Or my mom's place. Is something wrong?"

He blinked as the front of the titan opened and the pilot leapt out onto him. He recovered and tried to fight, at least hold her off, no question it was her too. Baby had back. Front as well. Covered in armored plates. Ouch. "Hey! You aren't Operator! Hey, stop kicking me! What the fuck?"

"Where have you been you idiot? I've been waiting out here for fucking hours! Some fucking brother you are!"

"Aisha? Holy fuck did you steal a Titan? What are you wearing? You can't wear that in public!"

"What? Hey! You can't tell me what to wear, plus I am more covered than ever! Armor, not the tits and ass kind either. No dumbass, I'm a pilot. You can't steal a Titan it would kill you, or self-destruct if you tried. Even with a data spike."

"A what? Oww! Aisha stop kicking me!"

The titan shook its head. BT sighed. Dragon laughed. Taylor said "Wow, I didn't know she was serious about that kicking thing."

Amy nodded in the neural link "I hope she wasn't, it doesn't seem like he will ever be not stupid." She felt of Taylor across the link and smiled "Nice beefcake though."

"Uh huh. Uh, in a purely ascetic sense. Stop laughing at me."

"Love you Babe." Amy sent her some images of herself working out. Taylor blushed. Amy was ripped, and when they worked out her definition made it tough for Taylor to pay attention. Otherwise she like to wear clothes that showed off the MMA fighter body she had now when she and Taylor were just hanging out.

BT figuratively eyed Dragon as she rolled around the data streams laughing her electronic ass off.

Titanfall

Sally looked at the drone "And if I change in the Titan?"

"If it can't contain you, it can eject you in a safe manner."

"How about safe for it? I don't want to hurt my friends."

"Safe for both of you."

"Fine. You know who my father is."

"Yes."

"And you don't care, Operator doesn't care?"

"You are not that man."

"Kingdom of Heaven? OK. Don't expect me to walk. I'm killing fuckers until there aren't anymore."

Titanfall

Lung looked around the workshop and lost control.

Titanfall

Taylor watched the images of the fireball cross the neural net and sat up. "So, Amy."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming. Give me a minute." Amy replied across the net.

Taylor nodded and got up. Her dad came out of his bedroom bat in hand. "Taylor?"

"Lung found out Bakuda left him." She blinked at the snort from her dads room then grinned as he blushed "Morning Henni."

Henrietta came to the door and stepped around Danny wrapping his robe around herself "Good morning. What could he expect. Me Lung, you woman. We sex, what the hell is that?"

Taylor blinked and laughed. Danny sighed and retreated to get on full pajamas as his robe had been liberated "Hey! My slippers!"

Henni waved over her shoulder on the way down the hall. Taylor grinned "So you are going to need a drawer."

"Please, I would have to take him shopping to be worried about it, seven pairs of boxers, seven t shirts, seven pair of blue trousers seven white shirts, seven pairs of, black, socks two pair of shoes, one pair of sandals from nineteen forty or something, The shorts to go with them, knee length, a godawful plaid, and two sports jackets, one suit. I can move a whole season in and not crowd him."

Taylor grinned some more. "So-"

"Yes, yes. Aren't you supposed to be upset or something? I thought your girlfriend would be over here turning me into a frog."

"What? Why would Amy turn you into a frog?"

"For upsetting you Taylor. Your girlfriend is sweet but a little psycho."

"We worked it out."

"Ha! Did Song get unglued yet?"

"Henni! Ewww!"

Amy walked in in full pilot gear followed by a muzzy looking Vicky "Hey I didn't think of that. Maybe that will fix her."

"Amy!"

"Yes Babe?" Amy tiptoed up and kissed her. Henni smiled. Taylor blushed.

Vicky looked around "Uh don't we have to go?"

"Nah, let him calm down a little. If he gets into shit he doesn't own I'll go give him a nap."

Taylor looked at Amy "You already did the thing."

"We had some stuff in the frig, and a couple drill bits in the garage. That acid trick of Riley's works great. With Sveta as an example that extension should be nearly indestructible. Even if it gets hurt I can fix it with a little high speed steel and a bone in roast."

Henni and Vicky both arched a brow. Crystal walked in followed by the rest of New Wave as Danny came down the hall dressed. White shirt, blue pants and black shoes. Taylor and Henni looked at each other and cracked up. Danny pouted and started breakfast. Or supervising breakfast. Henni got introduced around when Kathy and Aisha showed up. Then Sally got introduced around when she showed up.

BT relayed a call over the neural net and put it on speaker "Operator this is Director Piggot."

"Good morning Director, you are on speaker with all the pilots and New Wave, BT is patching in video, we were just about to game out a plan.

"BT is tracking him and so far he is staying to properties he owns, business type properties.

"I assume Bakuda came in from the cold?" Amy asked.

Dragon spoke up "Or got out of the heat, as it were."

Sally walked in view of the drone doing video with a drone nestled around her ear "Dad is a bit of a masher."

"Ryu, I assume?"

"Yes Director, BT inducted me last night. Not sure about that name. Beats Tatsu I guess, it should be Ryuu, long u."

Miss Militia's voice came in "A new pilot, is that wise Operator?"

"We're going to talk to him first. I'm sure he can be made to see reason. He has been adhering to the agreement with Amy to now. BT will be helping Ryuu." Taylor shrugged.

"Or I can drop him from here. Take about fifteen minutes if the wind's right."

Carol looked at Amy "Oh god, what did you do now?"

Amy smirked "Nothing yet. I did shake his hand though."

Director Piggot sighed "I knew something was wrong with getting you and Bonesaw together."

"Hey! Riley is great, smart as a whip. She is just a little hyper. She'll settle once we get her working. Eight hours a day of dealing with ungrateful assholes in the emergency room will slow her right down. Besides that was before I met her."

"Or turn her back to villainy, we are going to wait a while on that. Now dropping Lung, that would be permanent?" Emily asked.

"Uh, yes." Amy looked at Sally.

Sally shrugged "Might be the only way. Those Asian gangs aren't nice though, and he is sort of the cork in that genie bottle. They were the ones trafficking. He just didn't do anything about it as it made money. Kind of lazy. Of course it brought him women too. Yeah, let's go with lazy."

Danny nodded "They are better now than when they first started showing up. Even more so lately."

Emily sighed again "So that's a last resort then. We'll finish establishing a cordon and doing the evacuation."

"I have a list of properties of the type he is currently burning to the ground. He seems to be searching his own properties."

"Thank you BT, I'll call back when we are ready for you Operator."

Danny looked at Taylor. She shrugged "Art of the possible. Well, we could probably just kill them all but-" She shrugged, looking around at all the reactiuons. "We will work the Asian gangs down. Employing everyone I can at decent wages is helping. Then, when we have the pool he does force generation from under control, we can work the soldiers down for the rewards on them, then him. Might take a generation."

"If he doesn't find a way to make himself indispensable while you do that. Dad isn't stupid." Sally turned to Amy. "So, Song isn't going to spend any time as a frog? And Bonesaw, really?"

Amy sighed "It isn't all her fault. It's something about the neural net and upgrade in Taylor. There's a connection cluster in her hand, and that is a lot of nerves right there in a tiny area on a woman. Some kind of induction interaction. We think. She does it to me too. We're working on turning those distal clusters off when she isn't plugged into BT."

"Still sounds bad." Taylor frowned and put her finger on Amy's grinning lips "Shh."

Danny took his coffee and went to the living room of the penthouse. The other males followed. Danny turned on the news. The women spread out into the dining area.

In front of the hotel a crowd gathered as the news cameras lights came on and the cameras panned across four legions and BT standing in front of the hotel. News helicopters lit up other Titans standing around the borders of Asia town. Until the PRT and Police choppers chased them away by crowding the airspace. They then had to maintain a mile separation and the number of helicopters with fully rigged, stabilized, cameras capable of getting images from that far away wasn't large.

Legend and Alexandria landed on the patio of the penthouse and he looked at Danny as he walked in "Girl talk."

"Oh."

Alexandria nodded and walked right past the men.

Titanfall

Taylor looked at Alexandria, the other women were stood, or sat, around with mouths still agape at her announcement the PRT and Protectorate would handle it. "You, the Protectorate and PRT, need a win. You have considerable forces still deployed in the area, or ready to deploy."

Lady Photon finally recovered "That's all well and good but this is our home, these people our neighbors, maybe our friends."

"BT, people in the area, 3D, projected overlay." At Taylors word's a 3D virtual model of first Asia town then Brockton Bay sprang up over the table. realistic people populated it. Taylor looked closer, BT zoomed. "What are these people doing?" Taylor pointed at a knot of stationary people. The image zoomed in further. "Gangbangers. OK, these?" She indicated another group, who were moving. "OK evacuees. And this lady? Is that a Segway?"

Alexandria spoke "Dragon?"

"I have it. Velocity says it's a member of the Obaasan collective. Matriarchs, no real power however, they run the civil side of Asia town. It's apparently a cultural thing."

Sally nodded "Grandmothers, your life would not be worth living if you oppose the Obaasan. That one is holding those Bangers back with that glare, keeping the street clear for the evacuation. Mainly because she knows their grandmothers. It's a bit feudal and complex. Essentially only orphans are free to do whatever they want and then not really as they would be alone. Outcast, outlaws maybe. Ronin, cast adrift, not serving a lord and not a lord themselves, if they are gangers or parahumans. Usually not good people."

"Dragon, get some capes and PRT people in there to coordinate with the Obaasan please." Alexandria said.

Suddenly a line appeared across the map for two blocks. "BT?"

"Purity just established a fire break. That area is downwind, behind where she demolished those buildings is a residential area."

The men had drifted back over. Danny scowled "That was all property belonging to the city."

BT replied "Operator Industries actually, it had not been salvaged yet."

Taylor looked at Alexandria and arched a brow. "You will be compensated Operator."

Taylor huffed "BT help Dragon coordinate. I'm going to dress and then we are leaving. Lung needs to be stopped." The four pilots, Vicky, and Crystal followed her.

Five of them stopped at the door to her room, Amy walked right in then stuck her head back out "Well, come on."

"Amy! Naked!"

"Like you don't shower with them every morning. And you have panties on. Here, change to these armored ones."

"Amy! What the hell? How did you cut my panties? And why? I liked those!"

Danny pinched the bridge of his nose. Carol hugged him. Henni and Sarah chuckled.

Titanfall

Earlier. Sophia jerked upright at the bugle call. She growled "Assembly? What the fuck, it's what two, three?" She looked out her tiny window at the ruddy glow. "Oh fuck me."

"Gladly."

"Goddamnit!"

"Raincheck on doing you though, sweet, bitter, dark, chocolate that you are. Full kit, we are going to help evacuate Asia town then we get to kick Lung's ass." Rune turned and left.

Titanfall

"What can you tell us Natalie?"

"Natalie Morales NBC news, we are outside the Bay View Hotel Jim, Four uprated Legion class titans and one Vanguard Monarch are standing in front of the Hotel." The camera panned across the titans. "Operator is reportedly in residence at this Hotel. New Wave, have arrived, followed by Legend and Alexandria. Apparently, all conferring over this." The view changed to a pole mounted camera showing a sea of flame in Asia town with one of Purity's spinning helix's cutting a path and throwing up debris off to one side. "Apparently Lung has, well, gone off the deep end Jim. No one knows exactly why but the rumors are pretty lurid. Not something we can cover on air really; Let's just say a local female, alleged, villain is involved."

The producers in New York high fived as the Nielson instant ratings picked up to an eighty four share.

Titanfall

Sally looked over the railing "Seriously?"

"The thruster pack will slow you down and your titan will catch you." Taylor looked at her.

Aisha nodded rapidly "This is so fucking cool!"

"Wait until I stick a neural net connection in you." Amy supplied.

Katherine sighed "Are we one upping the Protectorate, I mean I can ride the elevator down?"

Taylor chuckled "Staying even. OK wait for 'Stand by for Pilot fall' and jump on the fall."

Titanfall

"Jim, we have movement in the penthouse!" The camera panned up and zoomed in "It looks like Operator and four pilots! Four legion Pilots Jim! You can tell from the face plates. Oh! Can you hear that Jim? Two Become One is playing on the vans sheet metal." Natalie paused and the TV audience heard 'From one fight onto the next'. "I think we are going to see Operator and these new pilots in action Jim. It's looking bad for Lung. The Protectorate and PRT have already put in a maximum effort in the evacuation." More footage rolled of lines of people streaming out of Asia town.

Titanfall

"This fucking song." Emily sighed. "Just wait, next we will hear-" 'Stand By for Pilot fall'. "Goddamnit! Wait, what?"

Titanfall

"They jumped Jim! The pilots have all jumped from the patio of the penthouse! The titans are moving, some kind of coordinated action here, those blue lights are the pilots thruster packs, And BT has snatched Operator out of the air after a vertical leap of at least a hundred feet! Now the other pilots are being grabbed by their titans! Floor it Charlie they are hauling bleep. Hector, Clive bring the van, cut over to the go pros Hector!" The TV audience watched amazed as a high speed chase flowed into their living rooms live and in living color on HD. One of the go pros had a view of the high-end sedans dash board and the speedometer read a hundred and twenty. The titans were pulling away leaping over buildings. "Clear right! Stand on it, I'll pay the tickets if the network doesn't. Come on you piece of bleep! I knew I should have gotten an AMG!"

Titanfall

Emily looked at the monitor tuned to Channel five, the local NBC affiliate, and watched, then groaned "Goddamnit Operator!"

Titanfall

"Evac first. The other Titans are already moving to help, then we find Lung and stop this crap. Sally you good?"

"I love this fucking thing! Holy shit did you see that! I jumped all the way across Lord Street!"

"I know! Taylor you are so getting lucky! And I'm straight!"

"Seriously underage as well, and Taylor is my girlfriend!" Amy rolled her eyes at the awws.

A titan joined up on them "Missy?"

"Yeah Taylor, I've been coordinating here. Beardmaster wouldn't let me go to the hotel. Saw that jump. 'Stand By for Pilot fall' and zoom, grab, bam! Waa hoo! Wide fucking open across town." I'm trying that later. So fucking cool."

"Good that you stayed here really. Thanks. So, what have we got?"

Titanfall

Henni went to dress as the super heroes had all left and Danny was ensconced in front of the TV. Working his BT cell phone to the bone getting the DWU up and running. Including their tugs which could function as fire boats. She was still giggling over Danny's reaction to all the girls charging in Taylor's room. Well Taylor and Amy's reaction too. Seriously though, who wouldn't want to show that hot of a girlfriend off. They did all shower together after practice as well. Changed in the same room too.

Titanfall

Shadow Stalker ghosted and leapt off the platform into a burning warehouse. Rune dropped both bags of water on it and circled to the bay for refills. She dumped two more and dropped to the street. Shadow Stalker hopped on. "This whole street is clear, that's the whole perimeter."

"Yeah we just got to cover the evac, then we can hunt down Lung."

"The Titans are already hunting. Operator and those five pilots are going to find him before we do."

"Probably, but we can back them up. Where did that fifth one come from?"

Titanfall

Legend paused a moment then looked at Alexandria "Shouldn't have tried to upstage her in her home town. Relax, we are getting mentioned as much as she is. Glenn is happy with the coverage."

"Because he is a BT acolyte!"

Legend laughed "Seriously Rebecca, chill. It's all good. Besides some psyops training for Glenn for free?"

"Hmmph!"

"You know, we need to talk to BT about helping Dragon on Endbringer fights. This has gone very well. No casualties even."

Titanfall

"Lung, what the actual fuck?"

"Amy! What Panacea is trying to say is that this is uncalled for Lung. You are only hurting your people. Well not physically, but financially." Taylor said. Hoping she wasn't about to have to chop Lung into chum.

"Strike two Lung!"

"Amy!"

The fifteen-foot-tall winged dragon turned to them and Sally ejected from her titan. "This is embarrassing daddy."

"Rraarry?"

"Yes, now stand there until you are back normal enough to talk. Or Panacea is going to snap her fingers and you are going to be done."

Taylor ejected followed by Amy. Lung recoiled. Literally, he kind of coiled up melting the asphalt under him. Taylor made out his words, with help from BT "You are a pilot."

"Yes Daddy. All of this over a Japanese girl?"

"Half Korean."

Sally rolled her eyes "Daddy! You know there are probably hundreds of girls who want to date you."

They all turned to the whirring noise. The little old lady on the Segway barked a bunch of an Asian language and everyone looked at Sally. She shrugged "The Obassan have had it. They are taking over his dating. Well, they are arranging him."

Taylor blinked "What?"

"No one opposes the Obaasan, there are billions of them. And they would all know."

"What?"

"Oh, and he has to fight the Endbringers now."

Alexandria landed. The Obassan looked at her speculatively and she took off again. Thinker powers being bullshit after all.

All the girls looked at each other. Aisha looked at the Segway rolling up to her Titan. "Uh, Taylor!"

Sally machine gunned some words at the Obaasan who nodded and looked at Taylor. Panacea hugged her arm to her chest and glared back. The Obaasan looked for a moment then cackled. She patted Panacea on the helmet and Taylor on the breast plate. Legend landed and bowed. He got a pat too.

A couple of gangers ran up in silvery nor'easter suits, with a roll of some kind of silvery material, and erected a tent thing over Lung. Legend looked around "Well, I think this went well. Shall we leave the Obaasan to her work?"

Taylor blinked again "What?"

"I am in contact with the collective via email Taylor. They have promised compensation from Lung."

Taylor sighed and walked back to BT "OK, I'm out of what the fuck ever this was."

Vicky landed "Villain day, still got practice though." Taylor sighed. BT scooped her up and the Titans and younger Heroes walked away talking. Legend took off.

Taylor had BT pull up the school rule book. Vicky pouted that Taylor didn't believe her about a villain day. "Sorry, Winslow didn't have villain days."

"Probably a PRT deal for the wards." Sally offered. She, Missy, Katy and Aisha were chasing each other all over the area firing paint guns at each other. In their titans. The paint was about a gallon at a time. It was huge mess, which probably didn't matter as it was on buildings and streets still smoldering.

Titanfall

Danny watched the girls come in after the cameras followed them running up the wall of the hotel. They all went in Taylor's room and when he started to get up Henni held his arm. "Give them a minute to decompress. That had to be tense."

"Cornering Lung, or being looked at for a possible match for him?" The whole thing had been live on camera and the network had by now translated it. Or as close as anyone would actually translate Obaasan edicts.

Henni nodded "That."

Danny chuckled and leaned his head back. The news was just talking heads now. He took the cup of coffee the Clark Bot brought him. "Thanks BT."

"You're welcome Danny."

Titanfall

Rune squawked as she got a ferocious hug from Shadow Stalker "Thank you for not landing." They had orbited in fairly close to where Lung had been brought to bay by the titans.

"You're my bitch."

Shadow Stalker remained silent.

"This hug is nice." Rune blinked when she got squeezed a little tighter. OK, what the fuck was she going to do now?

Lisa watched the pair sail overhead and nearly fell off her dog laughing. Rachel shook her head "Bitches are strange." Lisa laughed harder. Rachel whistled and the pack of twenty dogosaurs moved on in their search. The Obaasans weren't accounting for the homeless people. Plus there were some people still missing from their counts. Mostly teenagers who were probably off doing stupid teenager shit.


	24. Chapter 24

Titanfall 24

"Grumpy girls have to nap."

Taylor looked at Amy and huffed "And why exactly aren't you grumpy?"

Amy shrugged "He's Lung. I think, other than dropping him, we have done very well slowing down the hurtful criminal activity and making it more cultural difference stuff. If the PRT has a problem with that, well, Legend and Alexandria appeared in minutes."

Taylor popped to her feet from a set of splits and Amy tried it. Taylor smiled and caught her when she lost her balance.

Theo watched the girls who had taken over Aster as soon as he had shown up after being prompted by BT, which was convenient as he got to talk to Katherine. Not so convenient, as he was getting to learn to dance. Which he really sucked at. 'You jumped off a thirty four story building." He looked at Kathy after making that comment as quietly as he could.

"It was scary, but then the thruster pack came on and it was cool." Katherine enthused as she led him through some stretches.

Theo shook his head "If I am a pilot I am not going to be able to take my helmet off ever."

Song snorted behind him "You already have both drones. Unless those are hearing aids? We know you are a pilot. So you had to baby sit? That's why you didn't come out this morning?"

Theo looked at the tiny girl bouncing Aster on her hip. "Uh, damn it. OK, yes, but now Aster has a baby sitter, apparently permanently." He nodded to the Clark Bot standing near the girls who were grouped around Aster.

Aisha shrugged "Do the Iron Man thing and play it off. Not like you have powers right? Though, third generation, you might trigger next time Operator wants to make a statement. Unless you are babysitting."

"Uh."

Aisha snorted "Anders dude. But dating a sister so it's cool. Come on, sack up." Katherine glared at her "Or not, handle yo bidness sista."

"Stop that. You aren't a hood rat."

Missy the elder blew a short blast on her whistle and everyone lined up. A Clark Bot took Astrid. Theo got put in line with the male Wards.

Titanfall

Emily looked at Chief Director Costa Brown, Meredith, in the video conference. "So I still have to baby sit a dragon."

Meredith nodded "Until he doesn't show up for a Endbringer fight, then he is next on the apprehend list."

Emily smiled "I'll see if Panacea can be on call."

Director Armstrong barked a laugh, then sighed "Which isn't terrifying at all."

"Ha! You are eighty miles away. Though you do have Blasto and lately Panacea takes notions."

Alexandria leaned forward "I'll speak to her when I get my eye looked at. The thinkers don't believe it is a problem though. They think she is less dangerous now with Operator around."

Emily shrugged "Right up until they break up."

Meredith shrugged "We will see. Legend is still negotiating with Lung and the Obaasan, with Velocity's assistance. Amazingly all of that didn't kill anyone. And, with the exception of that strip Purity blasted, only damaged his own property. He was actually paying reparations despite not being tried or convicted before. Hopefully we can get back to that type of behavior.

"What is going on with Bakuda?"

Emily nodded toward Alexandria who shrugged "She will undergo a full evaluation and testing, then undo what she did in Cornell. We will investigate her claims. If this professor is guilty we will prosecute him. Meanwhile Bakuda is going to the Barracks and starting that course. We will see what the courts say, she did not, after all, kill anyone. Yet. She will obviously need some counseling. She can get that in the program at the Barracks."

Titanfall

"You are going to get me fired." Rune hissed. Shadow Stalker had her pressed up against a wall.

"Well, how were you planning on making good on all those suggestions?"

"We need them to go to two person cells. To do that they are going to have to trust us at least a little. You have to get with the program." She slid from between Shadow Stalker and the wall. "Not finding a whole new way to break the rules is a good start."

Shadow Stalker hugged her fiercely for a second "Got it. And if they don't?"

Rune snorted "They can't stay hyper alert like they are now forever. They'll get used to us and we them and we'll figure something out. Meanwhile let your fingers do the walking." She grinned at Stalkers dissatisfied grunt "Thanks Babe." She got another grunt. She chuckled. "Hey at least you get to go to school. I have to do mine by computer."

"Winslow, not sure I wouldn't prefer the computer."

"Outside is outside, be careful what you wish for. I only get out for training or patrols."

Titanfall

"Song?"

Song leaned back from Taylor and smiled goofily "Sorry, not sorry. That whole thing this morning was great and Operator was so cool!"

Amy shook her head "A whole bunch of other people were working on that too. Not least five other Pilots."

"And they are great, but Operator, Mmmmm."

"I may have to turn you into a frog after all."

"Ribit."

"Why you!" Song skipped out of Amy's not too serious reach laughing.

Missy blew her whistle "Johnson, Melissa, you're up, from the top with the matinee version."

Amy backed into Taylor and pulled her arms over her shoulders giving Song a narrowed gaze. Taylor chuckled "I had the neural net connection turned off that time."

"I know. She is just very excited. I don't think she did it again. She just rubbed all over you. You were right, when she finds out who you are for certain I am going to have to turn her clit off."

"That wasn't me babe, though I thought it would be a good idea. That was Riley." Taylor stood for a minute with her hands on Amy's belly.

"Speaking of, a body for Sveta?"

Amy nodded "Side of beef, some tungsten carbide, BT has a bunch of worn out end mills saved, that DNA sample I got from her, we can knock it out soon. Let it start normalizing. I can put some really rudimentary organs in for now as we are going to put her in it. That will be Riley's part.

"I'm working on some upgrades for us using that carbide. Might get to brute six.

"So, Saturday we are back at the House."

Taylor nodded "We can go look it over Friday night."

"Before or after our socially acceptable group movie and fat bomb date?"

"I thought after."

Amy smiled "And who else will be there?"

"I want to see it first, so BT?"

"I can work with that." Amy nodded and pulled Taylors arms tighter. Taylor blushed.

Titanfall

"Well that's the end of our sleepovers." Taylor sighed and looked down into Amy's sparkling eyes. "Easy Amy, sensitive."

Amy moved and snuggled into her side. Taylor pulled the sheet up over them both. "Ha! Payback. What got into you? I thought were weren't going that fast? I could have waited."

Taylor shrugged "No idea. Not turning my distal connection off and practicing the adult version to test the studio floor maybe. You looked so hot and it kinda spiraled from there."

Amy grinned "And with that Combi up at the parking spot with Betty and the Operator drone the parents don't need to know so won't blow up our sleepovers."

"I don't want to lie to Dad, even by omission."

Amy shrugged "Play the S class card. We'll work it out. I mean Carol didn't blow up when Vicky rode Dean around. She just put on some restrictions. I do need to get up and go home though. One am hard stop."

"So time for a shower then, you know if we take it together."

Amy looked at the clock on Taylor's bedside table "Forty five minutes? Hmm, five for travel." Taylor grinned as Amy slid out of the bed and pulled her to her feet.

The pair looked up when the porch light came on later and separated, slightly. Carol shook her head in exasperation while Vicky grinned like an idiot over her shoulder "Well, at least it was the back porch. Good night Taylor."

"Night Mrs. Dallon." Carol groaned. Vicky snatched Amy up and flew back into the house and up the stairs.

In Amy's bedroom she looked at her "So who had the penis first?"

"What?"

Tel me, tell me, tell me!"

Amy spluttered "No body had a penis! Why even!"

Carol leaned on the door frame. "Still? Why did I get Mrs. Dalloned then?"

"What?" Amy was so confused.

Carol shook her head "June then I guess?"

Amy blinked "For a penis? What? Uh, no? I mean I could do one now, but we aren't there yet."

Vicky collapsed on the bed "Oh, my, god! You are killing me! Mom!" Carol snorted. Amy pulled the pillow over her burning face. She had to cover her grin somehow.

Taylor lay in her bed blushing furiously. How did two women not figure out that a penis wasn't necessary? She curled up a bit "Amy, where exactly are you planning on putting that telephone pole you are designing?" She enquired across the neural network. She got a giggle back. It was going to be a long night.

Titanfall

Henni looked at Danny as he got back in bed. "So, no drama?"

Danny shrugged "No need." He sighed "My baby is growing up though."

Henni nodded "Hard to stop that. So you know, she asked me about a drawer."

Danny nodded "You want to keep your place?" Henni rolled onto him. "You could save some money." She kissed him. Danny didn't get an answer.

Titanfall

Taylor looked at Danny in the kitchen in the morning. He handed her a cup of tea. She arched a brow. "That right there is the giveaway. Never met a woman who couldn't do that eyebrow thing." Taylor blushed furiously. Danny hugged her. "Be careful Taylor." She nodded against the side of his head.

Taylor let Danny go and took her tea to a stool at the island "So, moving day."

"I have already moved everything to your specification Taylor." BT supplied.

Henni walked in in Danny's robe "So let's go look. Hey house warming!"

Taylor nodded "The Combis are picking up the team and we have practice at the house, after that everyone will want a look probably. City wide tomorrow. The top two go to regionals next week, states the week after. The Nationals are in July at Disney World."

Danny frowned, "Hot, muggy."

Taylor shrugged "Apparently on Aleph they are December through May. They have all kinds of conferences and stuff though. Plus that agrarian hold over school year. So they are off for like three months in the summer instead of three weeks at the end of each quarter. The National competitions are in the second quarter break. If we make it. Everyone thinks we will. Arcadia usually does, Immaculata about half the time since they consolidated. But that is apparently rising. They compete in a different division though, parochial school. Might be cool if both of the schools came from the Bay. The competition last two weeks. Barring something stupid happening. Apparently it's a real grind. They take two full strength squads so they have replacements for injuries and stuff."

Henni blinked "Uh, Panacea?" Taylor shrugged.

Danny nodded "We will meet you there after practice."

Taylor arched a brow at Henni who blushed. "Aunt Lacy is going to go nuts, our house warming is going to be her victory party."

Henni groaned "I know."

Titanfall

Elizabeth looked at the house "Uh, mine is bigger?"

Hennessy, another junior, rolled her eyes "You are such a snob. Basement. It's only Taylor and her dad. The house is plenty big. Not everyone needs twelve thousand square feet of empty space."

"You're one to talk, Living in a fifty thousand dollar shed. Tiny houses my butt. Your parents have one and then each of you kids have your own, on a half million dollar lot!"

Xenia, the last passenger on this Combi as it ran its route in the wealthiest part of town then down to the docks sighed "Are we doing this again? Come on. I want to see a BT built dance studio and gym! That three D model on the email was amazing! Besides with BT building it, rebuilding it, whatever, Taylor's house is probably worth more than both of yours put together."

Titanfall

Dragon looked at the instrument in the mirror polished rosewood, with its pink ivory wood inlay of Annette Hebert's maiden name, Maria Annette Greco, black velvet lined box. She knew that under that velvet was a custom carved form of mirror polished lignum vitae. "It's beautiful."

Colin nodded "Unique as well. Aside from being her mothers, the flutist who came and tested it were amazed at its tonal qualities and 'warmth', along with its 'brightness'.

"As it turns out an error in the manufacturing process caused the alloy to be a point nine six four pure silver, iridium alloy. It was hand crafted, and several small variations all combined with that variation in the metal turned out to be fortuitous.

"Several of the flutist were able to exactly replicate Annette Herbert's performance of the flute solo from 'Locomotive Breath', the only recording of her playing I was able to find. She is said to have produced a better version of the flute solo than Ian Anderson himself.

"It has been conservatively valued at seventy five thousand dollars. Even reconditioned as it is now. Apparently modern Platinum flutes from the best manufacturers can't match its qualities. The flutist were disappointed to never have been able to play it in its original condition.

Dragon smiled broadly "Colin this is a wonderful thing you have done. Finding it after Madison Clements reported what they had done to it, and where they had disposed of it, repairing it, the lengths you have gone too. The case you built, finding out how the original maker cased his instruments even. I'm proud of you." She had watched him pour hours of his time into reconditioning the flute, down to analyzing which marks were from normal use and which were from what the three girls had done to it, and then erasing every mark they had made on it.

Colin nodded "Shadow Stalker was my responsibility. It was the right thing to do. I'm just glad it was possible. I feared BT's salvage and improvement efforts would find it in that shallow cove and that he would destroy it, or recycle it without knowing what it was."

Dragon nodded "And you got to design your water dog."

Colin sighed "It doesn't look like a dog." Dragon giggled at his pout while he looked at the furry, crab like, autonomous sniffer drone he had built.

Titanfall

Missy led the girls following Taylor around on the tour. The boys as well, not that the girls noticed. Until the tour started up the stairs and the boys looked up into a sea of glares. Carlos led them back down to the studio, getting a broad wink from Consuela.

Taylor pointed "My room, Amy's room, Vicky- erh, the guest room." Lucy and Amanda made the kissy face at her. She rolled her eyes.

Aisha looked at the two first doors that shared a frame, or the frames butted against each other "Why even bother with the fiction?" The girls all giggled at Amy and Taylor's blushes.

Song put up a hand palm out "Hold up, this means we won't be using Operators studio anymore?"

Julie sighed "Yes tiny horn dog."

"Damnit!"

Missy shook her head and herded them all back down to the studio. The girls stretched out while the guys worked in the attached, separated by a glass wall that turned into a mirror, weight room.

After practice Amy and Taylor got chased out of the shower room with the logic of them not being there making it faster and less crowded for the others. Vicky, Lucy, and Amanda, got to go use the guest room because of the same logic.

Elizabeth sat on the director's chair with her name on it to work on her hair in front of her 'locker' a closet thing with a mirror, work surface, outlets for her blow drier, shelves and a drawer for make up or whatever and storage for up to hanging clothes beside the mirror and under the work surface. She looked at Hennessy sitting in front of the locker next to her "OK, so probably worth much more."

"Snob."

"Oh fuck, not again." Xenia whined from the other side.

Jacqueline looked at Song and broke up laughing at her pout "Practice here and they took away your eye candy."

"And Taylor got better and I don't, erh, never mind."

Jacqueline looked at her "Ribit."

"Shut up."

Upstairs Amy stepped into the shower. She hugged Taylor from behind. "Uh Amy? Someone might walk in?"

"BT is watching for us. This shared bathroom is going to be handy. Bigger than the old bathroom. Two sinks."

"Mmm hmm." Amy grinned.

"I see you Imp."

"Goddamnit. That's just not fair. Fucking power. How does it not work on optics."

"Thermal. I had to tune it though. It works on almost everything else."

Aisha sighed "So they are doing it right?"

"What is 'it'?"

Aisha nodded "I see what you mean. Still sex is sex right? I mean I don't get it, I want a boy, but everything else would be the same."

"I don't invade your privacy Imp."

"You are absolutely the worst spy ever."

"I could start."

"Oh, uh, no, that's cool."

In the shower Taylor had turned the tables "Taylor!" Taylor grinned and held Amy. Amy recovered a bit and shut the water off. "You know I have to try to do Alexandria later right. I might not want to be still shaking by then." Taylor pecked her on the lips and handed her a towel. Amy wrapped her hair up in it then stood up straight. Taylor smiled and handed her another. She put it on the stool in front of the vanity. Taylor gave up, grinning "Hush, come on, I really do have to do Alexandria."

"Words Babe."

"Dirty mind." She looked at Taylor in the mirror then giggled. "Fine, Heal Alexandria."

"Better."

Titanfall

Alexandria left and Amy snorted. Vicky nodded, they were all standing in Amy's area of the factory. Taylor shook her head "So they are checking on you?"

Amy shrugged "Lung being wary scares them maybe."

Vicky nodded "Plus two S class threats. And you two obviously being together. Even if you aren't sealing the deal." Amy and Taylor rolled their eyes.

Amy grunted and stood up. She had had to sit down after fixing Alexandria's eye, and she had only been able to do it with Taylor touching her "And now they think you are a Trump or something Taylor."

BT intoned "Uncertainty helps us."

Vicky shook her head "Only up to a point. And what was that anyway."

"The system administrator making a modification." BT replied. The three girls frowned. BT was stacking up evidence powers were like pieces of programming.

Amy shook herself, "OK, body for Sveta and then?"

Taylor shrugged "Training or patrol. All the pilots together with the Titans. There is something going on up in Bavaria." Bavaria was the area where the Empire 88 had concentrated on the North West side of town.


	25. Chapter 25

Titanfall 25

The operations officer watched as the tracks of the two patrols, Operator and the other Pilots, BT was letting them track for coordination purposes, it was nice as New Wave let them track them as well, and one of the Disciplinary Barracks patrols came together in the norther part of town.

On the ground, Rune looked at Operator "So, I don't get it, most of the time you run around outside your armor?"

Taylor nodded and shook her head. Rune snorted. Taylor replied "It isn't armor, not like tinker armor, more like Dragons remotes but not remote. It is BT. Or parts, clones, of him. We can pilot them. They can pilot themselves. It sort of depends on what the mission is."

Nessa, Menga, spoke up "So you can do parahuman stuff and they just blow the crap out of things."

Aisha disappeared then her titan disappeared. Rune sighed "That is so fucked up."

Golem chuckled "And that wasn't even the Titan doing the disappearing."

Menja looked at him "A boy pilot?" She looked at Taylor and grinned then winked.

Katherine cleared her throat and stepped up beside Theo. Rune chuckled "Well that figures. Not letting him get away huh? So, what are you guys doing up here?"

Taylor shrugged "Something funny going on. Lots of movement then nothing and now it's all quiet in Bavaria. Which it has never been. Bar fights, cage matches, dog fights, there was always some kind of penis waving contest going on up here between the Empire elements."

Menja nodded "True enough, why we are here too. They sent us because we know these folks."

Rune added "Bitch stomped on the dog fights. She was doing it before we all got put in the joint. Usually without her team. Her and those dino dogs would show up and it was game over. Hookwolf was the only one that could stop them and he couldn't be at all the dogfights. She didn't really care if he was, she would just turn the fighting dogs into dino's and they would go after him and their owners. Then leave with her. They were winding down. The cage matches not so much. But when you took out Hookwolf, well that was his deal. Storm Tiger and Cricket were in his group. Those normal were his too. The ones you roughed up. Truce violations. They got years for that. A nickel at least."

Panacea frowned "Fenja and Menja?"

Menja shrugged "We were trying to get the idiots out of there. And stop Hookwolf. Get him out too. Kaiser took the fall for that. He gave the orders."

Aisha appeared "So how is life in the Barracks? All 'Caged Heat' and shit?"

Rune shrugged "Better than my stint in juvy. We at least get to do useful work. They do take half our pay and bonuses for 'reparations' but that was the court. And no. We got single occupancy cells and curfews. Plus a Drill Instructor with eyes on whenever we are out of our cells. Even if you wanted to go that way you wouldn't get to pick your cell mate I don't think. It's all military. They would probably stick us with someone we didn't get along with to make us get along."

Taylor tilted her head "Oh, you can't fight either."

Rune nodded "No touching. Nasty words are fine, right up until its mission time. Then it's all professional all the time."

Taylor nodded "We are going up Baum and across Schmidt streets."

Rune looked at her phone "We are going the opposite way. Meet you at Berren's bakery." She led her patrol away. The PRT troopers shadowed them.

Theo commented on the internal Titan net "They are different." The pilots discussed it as they moved along.

Berren's turned out to be a German bakerie, a full-on German bakery. Rune looked at Taylor and chuckled "Full helmet. No goodies for you guys." A Clark Bot handed the counter person a black credit card. Taylor shot a hip out and put a hand on it while she chuckled as Rune pouted watching the Clark Bot buy a dozen of almost everything and a Black Forest cake. "No coffee then, and the coffee here is amazing!" Amy pulled the drinking tube from under her helmets chin and put in the cup of coffee she was holding. The coffee disappeared with an almost silent whirring noise. Rune tossed her hands up. "Fuck you guys. So, what did you find out?"

Taylor laughed "Nothing actually. Surprisingly nothing. Even on sensor sweeps and with our surveillance."

Rune nodded "Yeah, pretty ominous. I think a new cape has shown up. Must be a power hitter because no one is talking."

Amy looked at her "So they are afraid?"

"Not so much afraid, just still finding out the new process, I guess. We will have to patrol up here more." Rune replied. Menja nodded.

"Home grown maybe?" Theo offered.

Menja shrugged "A new trigger? Maybe. But they would have to be powerful. These guys know what we can do. And they watched you beat the crap out of Hookwolf. They damn sure knew what he could do."

Taylor nodded "A lot of them work for Operator Tech, those contracts are pretty strict. Maybe they are just trying to keep their jobs."

Menja laughed "Panacea, educate your girlfriend. People are idiots. They will always be idiots."

"Hey! Somebody needs to be an optimist."

The two groups talked a bit more then went their separate ways.

As they bounced back toward the factory Aisha offered "They aren't that bad. Not that different either. Somehow I expected something different from Super Villains."

Theo snorted "You haven't met dad."

Titanfall

Dinah looked at Helmuth "So that worked."

Helmuth Berren looked at her in the living room of his parents apartment upstairs of the bakery. They were allegedly doing homework and his mother was checking in and saying how cute they were every thirty minutes. "And why are we doing this again? We aren't doing anything illegal. We just sell answers. Well, you sell answers. I just scare people. Or my Wampa does." He put the small resin model on the table next to the other resin models of Star Wars creatures. Dinah went back to playing with the Twi'lek female she had in her hand.

Dinah rolled her eyes. "Because I don't want to be in the Protectorate or some gang's cage. The Acklay are scarier."

"Because girls don't like bugs." Helmuth shrugged.

Titanfall

Number Man blinked "So Operator puts her hand on Panacea and your shard rolls over and spreads her legs."

"I have my power and stereoscopic vision now." Alexandria ground out of clenched teeth.

David snorted "You pretty much described it that way Rebecca. So, some kind of administrator shard that can give other shards orders."

Doctor Mother frowned "Something we haven't seen. Does this make Operator the super trump? If so, how is she calling these constructs?"

Paul shrugged "A striker ability though?"

"We still haven't gotten Operator in for testing. She owes us that from the deal. It's been a month. We will have to press it a little."

Rebecca shook her head "And have her call another squad, or a whole platoon? One of each type? How exactly are we going to test that without adding to her power base?" Meredith pinched the bridge of her nose as the discussion got started.

Titanfall

Danny handed Taylor her glass of water. She smiled at him. "So what is Henni's bedtime routine going to be?"

"We did go kind of fast there didn't we."

"In the slowest way possible. You've known her for what, twenty years?"

"Hey! Uh, seventeen?" Taylor shook her head at Danny's answer. "Speaking of fast."

Taylor nodded "Yeah, I know. BT says it's all good and we aren't rebounds for each other." Danny looked blank. "Me from Emma and Amy from Vicky."

Danny opened his mouth, shut it, then said "I hadn't even considered that."

Taylor shrugged "Me either really. Especially as boys are still interesting to me, in a beefcakey kind of way."

"Ha! That I know about, uh with girls I mean. Pure hormones. Give it a few years, you may be one way, or not. You could like both, or either. That's a thing. Besides, Carol is terrified you are both going to end up pregnant suddenly. What were you all doing on her back porch the other night?" Danny grinned. He had seen the video from BT. BT had shown him so he had the data when Carol called in a bit of a panic. The girls hadn't even been necking. Just a hug and some kissing.

Taylor blushed "Nothing much."

Danny tossed her a bone "I know. You are much too shy to be doing anything on her porch. It's a little cold still too."

"Dad!"

Danny laughed "So county wide tomorrow in the Helman auditorium. No idea what good is, so you are on your own with that I'm afraid."

"Like I know? Plus, its ninety seconds of the little match girl, other than catching and tossing, and waving pom poms while smiling and doing some steps. My parts anyway. We'll see I guess. Carmen has seen all the parts and thinks we are sure to win, other than Imaculatta and they are in the parochial league anyway. Next year we are apparently going to do a city wide Rec league team too." Taylor took a drink of water.

"I've never been to Disney World. We meant to go, but your mom had summer semester and, well summer was a busy time for work."

Taylor hipped off the counter after finishing her water and hugged him "It's cool Dad. We'll see if we can get there. Are you tall enough for the rides?"

"Easy there kiddo." Taylor chuckled and went upstairs.

"You do meet all the ride requirements Danny."

"Thanks BT."

Titanfall

Henni watched the routine and looked at Danny. Danny shrugged "Does air time count? Taylor chucked that girl fifty feet up. She could have changed the light bulbs up there."

Henni laughed "She did all those flips and twist up there too. They are more precise than the others. I think they got classical as well. Three of the judges were bawling their eyes out. Them and most of us."

Danny nodded "That hip hop thing was energetic?"

Henni laughed "OK, yeah let's go with that. So, regionals here, then states in-"

"Here. Biggest indoor arena in the state, All Father, well, Medhall." Danny supplied.

Henni nodded "Handy." Danny wrapped an arm across her shoulders "That wasn't a suggestion mister. Public."

"Taylor is back stage doing whatever."

Henni rolled her eyes "And she is the only one that matters."

"And you." Henni slid closer to him. Lacey, sitting behind them, grinned. Kurt rolled his eyes.

Titanfall

Back stage, Taylor pulled the shell off and Song glared around the room. Amy hid a smile. Song was going to go completely psycho if these people kept staring at Taylor. Stare worthy as she was, Song was not having it. It was hilarious watching the four-foot-tall Song stare down girls who could probably toss her to the ceiling of the arena like Taylor had done Jessica. Much less the boys the other teams had managed to come up with. She came up to about their belt buckles. Hey, wait a minute! Those fuckers were ogling Taylor!

Vicky watched the light bulb come on on Amy and stifled her giggles as she pulled her back "No turning people into frogs."

Amy whined "Just one, as a warning."

"I thought you weren't doing jealous girlfriend anymore."

"Grrrrr."

"So still my hard headed sister."

"Grrrr."

Vicky looked around and saw they were alone. "So, tonight?"

Amy blinked "Tonight what?"

"You and Taylor."

"Duh, Me and Taylor all the time. School, shower, breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Even at the hospital lately. Last night on patrol."

"Where in school? I got a key to the Wards storage and Sometimes Dean and I-"

"Oh my god! No! Gross! Hey, what if like Dennis walks in. He could catch you having sex."

"What? No! Just making out. Now that you mention it though there is a sofa in there… yeah no. Dennis could walk in. He never knocks."

"Ha! And Carol is worried about me getting pregnant. Hey, why do the Wards have a sofa?"

"Chris has a workbench too. Plus, they got a flat screen in there, frig. It has a bathroom. Which is like filthy, or was. I made them clean it, with Lysol. Vista would kill them next year. I got them in the habit now though. No idea why. Maybe they wait on the bus or something?"

Carlos walked over "It's a safe room, the flat screen is hooked to Ops. The walls are like solid armor of some kind. Plus storage for our suits."

Consuela looked at him "And the rest of us?"

"Class rooms are shelter locations. It's for us to bug out to if we can't handle whatever it is."

Consuela pulled him away "I don't like this plan."

Amy grinned at Vicky "Bet there is a change in the Wards SOP."

Vicky shrugged "It might make sense. I need to find Dean and ask him. You go find your girlfriend. And no frogs!" She paused "Or toads!"

Amy walked over to Taylor who now had a top and shorts on over the sports bra and yoga shorts. She and Amy didn't have parts in the next piece. None of the underclassmen did.

Taylor hugged her and they sat down by the wall. Song sat on Taylor's other side and helped Amy smirk at people who were watching Taylor. They both got narrowed eyes back.

Titanfall

Emily looked at her intelligence officer "The absence of activity is what you are basing the presence of a parahuman in the North East sector of town on."

"Yes Ma'am, we don't think anything else would stop them from continuing their previous behavior."

Emily nodded "Other than BT and his drones reporting most crimes as they happen."

"Which has not shut down crime in the other sectors."

"True. So maybe. Ops, let's keep up the patrols."

Titanfall

Danny looked at the storefront "This was a college hang out back in the day. Actually, came by here for breakfast. Brochen and coffee really. Sometimes they had bratwurst though. Real ones. Two on a roll." Henni nodded as did Kurt and Lacy.

Taylor nodded "Still on the board behind the counter."

Danny nodded "This is the heart of the Empire."

"Not anymore?" Taylor nodded at the cop car and PRT truck parked at the intersection. She stepped out of the way of the two kids, a boy and a girl who ran past.

Then the girl skidded to a stop and turned "You're a dancer!"

Taylor smiled "You saw the competition?"

She got a vigorous nod "You guys were great! Is that like a whole ballet? The one with you and the Asian girl?"

Taylor nodded "We are working on it. Expanding it. Its really only like two scenes now, Her selling matches, or not selling them, then her freezing to death and me coming to get her. I'm Taylor."

"Dinah, Helmuth, his parents own the bakery." Dinah drug the blond boy over by his hand. Taylor smiled at him.

Danny looked at the adults walking up "Roy."

"Danny! Panacea, Glory Girl, Hennrietta."

Danny indicated Taylor "My daughter Taylor."

The Mayor introduced himself and his brother in law and their wives. Along with his sister's daughter. Dinah. "So, you got the ferry working Danny."

Danny smirked "And it is working out like I said it would. People ride them to work over in the docks but live places like this."

Roy nodded "Or buy houses in the docks. I saw yours being rebuilt. Model home then?"

Taylor scowled "No. All I need is a bunch of strangers traipsing through my house."

"Payment for services rendered." Danny shrugged. "And a test bed. BT did buy up a lot of property."

"Operator did you mean. We still haven't gotten clarification on his status from the PRT. He circumvented the issue putting his human partners name on the contracts." Roy clarified as he held the door of the bakery open.

Taylor, Amy and BT were having a conversation across the neural net "Both those kids are parahumans Taylor."

"Yep, I got that. We will watch them."

"They are probably what is happening up here." BT added.

"She has a pretty big gemma. He does to actually. It could be. They are a cute couple." Amy looked at Taylor who sighed. Amy giggled.

Titanfall

Dinah looked at the answers "Well, they know, Taylor is Operator."

Helmuth nodded "They seem nice. One of those imperial spy droids would be nice." Dinah rolled her eyes. He was such a boy, and a Star Wars maniac. She watched the creatures wrestling around on the table.


	26. Chapter 26

Titanfall 26

Missy the elder glared at Katy Carruthers "You know we practice every day. How is she going to swim for you? We're in our competition season now."

Katy smiled "Swimming is great exercise!"

Vicky tried "Katy, look at Taylor. Does she look like she needs any more general exercise?"

The table full of girls watched Katy for a moment and Missy handed her a napkin "Wipe your drool, asked and answered I think. Taylor has to learn the techniques and steps Katy."

Katy huffed "Fine, just a couple laps to see what might be possible. Amy did whatever the hell she did to the pool and it's pretty much plain water. It doesn't dry out our skin or wreck our hair anymore. She can change, do a couple laps, towel dry and dress. We even have hair caps that actually work. Then you can have her back."

Taylor looked around at all of them "Uh, hello." She sighed as she was dragged off toward the pool "Uh, class?"

Katy waved a permission slip. "Just take a minute, got a pass for you from the genius prison anyway."

"Bathing suit?"

"Got a whole rack of racer backs for the team. Never had a girl your size so those one have never even been worn. Still in the packaging." Katy grinned. Taylor sighed.

Titanfall

The girls watched as Taylor left the water at the end of one lap up and back like a porpoise leaping through a hoop and landed on the deck around the pool on her feet. "That's pretty fun actually."

Janice Park recovered "Volleyball! We have dibs!"

Titanfall

Amy lay on Taylor "It's your own fault."

"How was I to know they had cameras running to check my form? I didn't even know the pool had those windows. That was all BT anyway. I was just riding."

BT replied in the neural network "There is an amazing body of work devoted to Olympic swimming technique on the internet, some quite good science as well. If the rule making bodies would allow it I have some designs for suits that could even increase speeds. The body suit is quite stylish as well. You could probably web Taylor's hands and feet, along with the rest of the team Amy. That actually isn't covered in the rules."

Amy lay still for a minute then Taylor rolled her off to the side "Still pretty full Babe."

"You ate two Challengers! Both in under one's time limit. I thought Bob was going to cry."

"Errrp. 'Scuse me."

"You have cow breath."

Henni put her hand over her mouth. She and Danny were sitting on the love seat. Taylor and Amy were lying in the floor on the very nice silk Oriental rug. Even though they had left them the sofa. All the rooms in the house had the rugs as BT had found twenty seven forty foot intermodal containers of them in one of the warehouses he had purchased. They had been watching the videos posted online of Taylor swimming.

Danny shook his head "So the Captain of the swim team posted this video to terrify the other teams?"

Amy snorted "Katy can be a little aggressive. Plus with Taylor swimming the fifty to eight hundred meter free style for her-" She shrugged.

Henni added "If the lawyers can bully the amateur association into it."

Taylor waved her off "Be like the dancing. They will just say some of the team members are parahumans, and I can't swim as fast as I want, only fast enough to win, or I blow my cover. If they ever get a water ability parahuman who is out then they can go nuts. The PRT has to certify our parahuman abilities are not directly related to the sport. They have all those videos the Wards take while we run the obstacle course, plus the data Armsmaster collects from his suit and the sensors he put on the course.

"That's how I, by myself, got brute five and thinker seven, combat, rated. Though that mover six might be trouble."

Amy snuggled her head into Taylors neck "That's mechanically aided. And no Flipper tricks. Even if you are just jumping off the pool bottom, sides, whatever. Who even does parkour in the water? Even though you have so little body fat you sink instead of floating."

Taylor pouted, then giggled "All of your faces though. It was like I was Vicky and had blasted you all with adore me. Ouch! No biting! Girlfriends aren't food!"

"Big baby I barely nipped you."

Henni and Danny laughed. Danny asked "Volleyball not so much though?"

Taylor nodded "Beach only. That floor hurts when you go after a low, or spiked, one. Dig my butt, more like splat, or skinned. Those other girls are lower to the ground. Plus those uniforms are like nineteen seventy or something.

"Apparently Janice has a freshman coming up that is as tall as I am. They like to match heights for beach volleyball and height matters. And I can wear a racer back for it. More coverage, not everything needs sun and it isn't California or Florida. Kinda sucks because I can't spike as hard as I want to."

Amy giggled "You popped three balls Taylor."

"Janice said hit it as hard as I could."

Amy giggled "All those rufty tufty volleyball girls running shrieking."

"Why do we even bother with a secret identity?" Danny asked.

"It is analogous to a soldiers uniform I think Danny. Put on the mask, uniform, and certain behaviors are expected and accepted, others are not, and the groups enforce those guidelines. All of the groups." BT, through the ball droid hovering above the armchair, answered.

Everyone paused while looking thoughtful. Finally Henni shook her head "So how are you going to schedule all of this?"

Taylor moaned "BT, Missy, Katy and Janice. Apparently I will need to practice with my freshman partner for Volleyball but it's a spring sport. Cheer and Dance are now, but really just practice and the regional then states, and then a big gap until the nationals, unless we get an invitation to an invitational. Swimming, I apparently already got, so they are going to register me and call me for events. Relays but that will just take learning the procedure. Practices as I can. A lot of swimming is individual effort really. Not so much 'team'. Well the relays but I may not do them. Plus BT has the rules. And has already filed eighty six questions for clarification.

"Then training with BT and the other pilots and patrols. Studying kind of all the time. Working with Amy. Filing patents. Signing papers for the lawyers. Some time at the sanitarium every few days for Riley and Sveta. We still need to stuff her in a titan and see what happens. All that stuff. Like normal."

"I have scheduled time for you and Amy Taylor." BT added.

Amy shrugged "Wait a week and we can put her in her body."

"I apparently won't have much time for TV. Good we have the Combi's. And the neural network."

"Me either and yeah." Amy added.

Talor nodded "Plus ours are the only blue and white ones and the cops leave us alone as long as a Clark Bot is driving. That video from BT driving that course for the test as fast as he could with those testers impressed the hell out of them I guess.

Henni and Danny collapsed laughing.

"I am working on a Super Goblin."

Henni and Danny stopped laughing. Danny sighed "A drop ship, capable of reaching orbit?"

Titanfall

Shadow Stalker ran like she had never run before. She go to the edge of the building and leapt. She ghosted and drifted to the next building. Tattletale, on console, told her "You're good, you lost them. Get to the ground floor, a van will be waiting by the fire exit. I would hurry."

Sophia sank through the roof she had landed on "What the fuck? Where did four feet tall praying mantises come from?" She sank through the floor she landed on.

"Matel."

"What?"

Lisa shrugged, not that Sophia could see her, then spoke "Some toy maker, well, resin figurine maker. Those were Acklay. Star Wars collectible figurines, blown up, life size maybe, I don't know canon that well, and animated. Lucas is going to sue the snot out of this cape."

Gully came up on the net "Now that you got away, why exactly were they chasing you Shadow Stalker?"

"No idea. You saw. I was just scouting around and suddenly those fucking things were after me."

Gully gave a skeptical snort "And you didn't do any extracurricular patrols up there in Bavaria?"

"I might have, but that was then. I haven't done anymore."

Gully nodded "Tough to do with a monitor on each wrist and ankle." Sophia fumed as she phased through the fire alarmed door and then into the van. The PRT driver and gunner looked at her and she gave the sign. The driver counter signed and they took off headed to pick up the rest of the patrol.

Gully looked at Lisa in the operations center and arched a brow. Lisa shrugged "Triggered Yoda maybe. Not like she hasn't triggered others we know of. He is holding a grudge. I don't think it's because she is black. He hasn't gone after any of the other persons of color on the teams. Nala wanders around up there as a freaking lion wearing that vest and nobody bothers her. The kids love her. The dogs not so much. Unless Bitch is around. Ursa Minor too. Although the dogs freak on him and run away. Big ass black bear like that."

"What the hell is with this town and masters and changers? Plus, Disney will sue as well." Gully shook her head.

"Hey! Those two are imports The PRT brought here to the Barracks. Nala from Georgia and Ursa Minor from Jersey."

Shadow Stalker finally got a word in "You all said it was a kid, I didn't do anything to any kid."

Gully snorted "Kids have relatives."

Titanfall

Helmuth looked at his phone and winced. Dinah was not a happy girl. Tomorrow was going to be bad. He got the Acklay pack started home.

Titanfall

Aisha double jumped to the roof and her legion scooped her up and put her in the cockpit. "Thanks. I still don't get how you do that with me strangered out."

"I have been extensively modified for you Aisha. Much better sensors in the specific areas where you can be sensed. Plus, video, which is delayed not completely mitigated by your ability. I simply calculate where you will be based on your known abilities."

"Hmph, love you too. So Berrens, got to be the kid. They ran to the fire escape and shrank. He scooped them up and took them inside."

BT's voice, BT actual, her cloned BT was slightly different now, said "Concur. I am placing a stealth drone."

"No whacking kids, and unwritten rules violation much?"

Her BT replied "Observation and reporting only. Also if they are unwritten are they really rules?"

"We are so going to get to fight the Teeth and every other villain group on the planet. OK Board Walk James."

"Home Aisha. You have class tomorrow."

"I so need a neural implant so you can just jam everything in my head. Running it all on my helmet HUD all day gives me a headache."

"Operator does an average of twelve hours of class work every day."

"Yeah, in like six seconds, because it is at the speed of thought. And she writes papers and test as fast as a for real laser printer can burn the letters on the paper. If they are in electrons she does it even faster. Panacea now too."

BT actual replied "Your implant is being constructed. You will receive it tomorrow, or as soon as you have parental permission."

"Phhtt. Got moms. Dad is still reading the packet and getting his stockade lawyer buddies to read it. Brian flipped right out and took a copy to Brandish. You didn't make Golem get both parents."

"Because he didn't get his stepmother high to have her sign."

"I didn't get her high, she's always high."

"The lawyers insisted on both in your case after they visited your mother. Plus his father is in prison, maybe headed for the birdcage if the prosecutors have their way."

"Yeah she was pretty fucked up that day."

"Which is odd. I should get Panacea to look at her. Perhaps she is naturally immune."

"Or is so fucked up all the time the virus couldn't take."

"Interesting conclusion. Supporting argument?"

"Or THC. What's in hash?"

"Primary active ingredient is THC, constituents, depending on method of ingestion, can include-"

Aisha rolled her eyes and started working on the argument. It was always school with BT. All the BTs. They could be distracted though. Sort of.

Titanfall

"Everything is in order Grue. It's a fairly standard release for an elective surgical procedure."

"Panacea has one."

Carol, in her Brandish persona, sort of, paused "And my entire family has been enhanced by Panacea and Operator. On the one hand I can see as this might appear to be a conflict of interest, however on the other, as I said, this is standard in the medical field. I don't believe any lawyer would have a problem with it.

"I can tell you Panacea is doing excellent work. Even better than before. She didn't do her own implant either, BT did hers, modeled on the one she put in Operator. Then they together improved operators. Or put in a new, better, EMP hardened, one and took the old one out. The PRT has looked at the video of Panacea's procedure and approved of it. The tinker board, and the thinker panel, along with their medical section."

Grue nodded "So it's really putting in a drone and connecting it directly to her brain."

"A very high capacity drone." With cooling, but that was on the drawing and in the specs. It was a wonder the girls wore clothes at all. The pilot suits had that cooling built in but their school clothes didn't. Or did they? Hmmm. She focused back on Grue.

Titanfall

"There, last one." Bakuda tossed the metal cylinder after pulling the pin. The spoon flew away and there was a pop. Then the area of stopped time stopped stopping time. The students caught in it continued the motions they had been doing for a few seconds then the shouting and crying started. "OK, All done. You can move me to LA now."

Armsmaster and the Dragon remote looked at her. Dragon spoke "You know you are going to the disciplinary Barracks in Brockton Bay."

Armsmaster nodded "When you are not in the lab that has been prepared for you on the Rig."

Bakuda pulled at the inch wide choker she was wearing "And Lung is right there."

Armsmaster informed her "You did not make the Obaasan's list."

"What? Why not?"

"You are too volatile. The collective has decided he needs a steadying influence. Additionally they did not feel you were strong enough to control Lung."

"What?" Bakuda nearly shrieked. Dragon sighed.

Armsmaster had moved on "Why do you use the M288 fuze?" Bakuda and Dragon both looked at him. Dragon decided her next remote was going to have moveable eyebrows no matter how much time and effort it took to make them. Not video ones either, real ones, that could be controlled separately, with a range of motion from the brow ridge to the hair line Like Bakuda's. Damnit, the remotes didn't have hair. She focused on Bakuda for a second and snapped a calibrated still. She would start there and see how well it worked.

Bakuda tossed up her hands "Because the stupid government sells the fuze body, pins, and spoons, as scrap metal and you can reprime them with a magnum pistol primer, a small plastic sample container, and Pyrodex. You are as big an ass as the professors here. Although I don't think you'll try to rape me and make me give you blow jobs so you wouldn't fail me like that fuck there did. He just has the dating skills of a rhino." She waved at a male professor. Dragon darted him.

Armsmaster said "Truth." The PRT troopers foamed the professor as he hit the ground.

"Oh my fucking god." Bakuda put her face in her hands.

Titanfall

Emily looked at the report. She looked across to the PRT lead prosecutor. He shrugged "We are cooperating with the New York State Police. Fourteen tenured professors, the Chief of the campus police, the local police Chief, four prosecutors, two judges, and the Chancellor of the University so far. BT and Dragon, Armsmaster too, are on a bit of a rampage in the Universities computer system. It looks grim. They have covered up hundreds of abuse allegations, allegations that are well founded."

Emily reached in her desk drawer and got out a bottle of Crown Royal reserve. She arched a brow and got out two glasses at the Prosecutors shrug and nod. "It still doesn't excuse Bakuda." She said as she poured them each a finger into some very nice crystal tumblers and added a splash of spring water from a bottle in the same drawer.

"No, she is, and was, in full command of her faculties. Supplying explosive devices to a criminal enterprise, unlawful imprisonment, destruction of property, resisting arrest. She was lucky it was a closed trial and she only got two years because those devices had not been used and on the condition of her clearing up the mess she made of Cornell." The prosecutor agreed.

"She was under age. Still is, if barely."

"Yes, some people are going to have a very tough time in prison, when they are sent there for molesting a child, for fifteen to twenty years or longer."

Emily nodded "Take the brakes off. Charge them with everything and go for the maximum. See if you can figure a way to get the death penalty on the table. If any of them are Parahuman get them in front of the tribunal. Let's get them in the Birdcage. I'm tired of these fucks triggering women."

"Triggering anyone."

"Sixty two percent of capes are women. Bitch, apparently she can turn however many dogs are in the area into dinosaurs that parahumans can barely fight. No restriction on numbers. Given enough time she could turn however many are in her range, which is growing. Panacea, do I even need to say it? Operator, same. Purity. Miss Militia. Have you seen her Davy Crocket? It's functional. She can make one a second. Vista, Labyrinth, All S class threats. All right here in town, not even out in the Region.

"Take the women away and what are you left with for an S class threat? Lung. Nilbog is caged. Rumor control has Panacea being upset with him so perhaps a limited lifespan on him being a problem. I can deal with one, I can't deal with eight, no matter what resources I am given."

The prosecutor frowned "I think that's a limited view."

"I have a limited remit. I'm not here to change the world. I'm here to keep Parahumans from hurting people, to include each other. Changing the world is someone else's job, thank god. If there are fewer parahumans that I cannot control at all, other than by psychological means, my job is easier. If there are less of them period because ass hats, and or environmental conditions, are not triggering them, even better. Then you pie in the sky types can change the world once you get elected." Emily raised her glass at him and drank. The prosecutor tilted his and drank with her. Not that he agreed, well he was going to run for office as soon as he retired, twenty year retirements were great, but not with the rest of her 'limited remit' philosophy.


	27. Chapter 27

Titanfall 27

Emily Piggot reread the portion of the briefing again. Then she sat back and rubbed her forehead for a moment. "Well, Lung will be paying that off for a while. And this is a conservative valuation of the destroyed OI property?" She looked at the eight digits before the decimal place again and chuckled.

Her Intel officer winced "Yes. He has already sent out scouts looking for Heartbreaker and scouting Nilbog's enclosure. We think he is shifting to picking up the bounties on kill ordered targets."

Emily froze for a second "Could he get Nilbog done?"

"The thinkers seem to believe he has a good chance. Of course then he would be ramped up, perhaps larger than ever before. The fire could possibly sterilize Nilbog's enclosure though."

Emily nodded and tapped the briefing on her monitor enlarging a portion on the screen "And this report on Heartbreaker?"

"Two rounds, small caliber, assumed to be ice projectiles. BT gave us some information and it checks out. Armsmaster was able to make the projectiles. Actually Kid Win. Sulfur Hexafluoride. Colorless, odorless but used as a tracer gas. Easy to trace. The women and children, those not killed, were taken into custody by the Montreal PRT. They're calling the parahuman members the 'Heartbroken'."

"And Montreal is working through M&S protocols on hundreds of people. Better them than us. Still, let's offer them any assistance we can Ops. So we have a cape killer. Or the same old one actually. Keep working it." Emily relayed to her staff.

"Next item, the Travelers?"

"As stated in the briefing director, they are in the area, or rather they dropped from sight in the area. The supposition is they are after Panacea." The intel officer wanted to cringe but suppressed it.

Emily paged through the briefing and then back by tapping on her screen and nodded. "Something wrong with one or more of the group. Surprisingly clear thinker analysis here. Ah, Tattletale wrote this assessment. Trickster, the leader. Sundancer the most dangerous. Genesis, a master/shaker, of course, it's Brockton Bay after all, there has to be a master." The staff chuckled "Ballistic a blaster, two other members, one wildly dangerous. At least according to Tattletale, a Case fifty three. The other unknown. This is all based off the New York PRT's intelligence on them. Plus some incidental reports in the Midwest. Chicago PRT. Oh great, a wizard. Now if there is a tornado I'll have to guard my ruby slippers." That got a big laugh.

"Probably looking for help for this Case 53. Suspected to have come from Madison so potential Simurgh bombs. BT will spear the bitch for this." Emily blinked as the screens all flashed red and changed to an image of a deorbiting object, she rose and led the staff to the operations room at the run.

The Battle captain looked at her "The Simurgh is deorbiting. Killington Vermont."

Emily snorted "Ski Vacation?"

Intel shook her head "Secondary roads, the Travelers like to use them."

"Fuck, my life. OK, suited and booted, lets push the big red button."

"We'll never get there in time to be set."

Emily watched the big screen developing picture in pictures around the edge of it and looked at the one with the Chief Director in it "The Simurgh, Headed for Killington. We think to attack the Travelers."

The battle captain relayed "Six minutes."

Meredith nodded "Legend is on his way to the sanitarium."

Emily frowned then looked at Operators itinerary for the day "Fuck, my life."

Meredith snorted "Mine too. No music yet."

Emily tapped her ear "BT, Fury."

"Good Afternoon Director."

"The Simurgh is deorbiting."

"I am aware Director. We are a bit busy at the moment. Taylor can call some assistance if you require it?"

"I don't think that's necessary BT." Meredith cut in. Emily glared at her.

"The other Titans are enroute to secure the area. Vista is taking charge of the response. Six pilots are available for the mission ETA one hour. Vista will secure the area. Operator and Panacea should be available at that time as well."

Emily frowned "Just Secure?"

"I believe the Simurgh is overreacting. I think she intends to do something with one of the travelers, sorry, no name for her in the database. Perhaps all of them. I will attempt to communicate with her and talk her down from killing them. I have been tracking them. They were enroute to see Panacea. Actually to kidnap Panacea. I had planned to stop them."

"Vista, Fury."

"Fury, Vista, I'm enoute in my titan, the other Legions are joining me, Along with Pilots Golem, Pelter, Imp, Ryuu as soon as she comes up, and a new pilot, Artemis, we plan to encircle the Simurgh and evacuate the civilians. Then we will see what we have to do." Emily watched the screen as an image replaced the map. Apparently the view from a titan running along the interstate faster than the cars were going. There was a State trooper about a hundred yards in front of her. "I'm holding the pace down for now until the others catch up. Imp was already in her Titan but Golem and Pelter had to get out of class. They are mounted now. Artemis came from Operators factory. Ryuu has not come up yet but her titan is warmed up."

"Vista Dragon, vectoring lift to you. ETA eight minutes. If you can give me a location on the others I can send lift to them."

"BT, PRT 6. I understand you intend to communicate with the Simurgh?"

"Yes Chief Director. As we discovered while Panacea healed Alexandria, Operator has the ability to communicate with the entities causing parahuman abilities. At least in a limited way. She was able to give Alexandria's entity instructions at any rate."

Emily blinked "What?"

Meredith nodded in the video view "It's a striker ability, and it took Panacea and Operator, I understood."

BT's voice replied "However no one has attempted to communicate with the Endbringers since Behemoth failed to respond. As you know I suspect Winged One on PHO is the Simurgh. I have been in regular communication with her." A screen filled with a PHO PM conversation dating back three weeks.

Tattletale slid into the operations room and gaped at the screen. Her eyes rolled up in her head and she crumpled to the floor. Emily sighed as one of the troopers knelt beside her then called for a medic. "OK, Vista, do not engage until we are set. Let's go people, build me a containment, and let's coordinate these capes. Dragon send lift to the sanitarium for Operator and Panacea, and their titans please."

"Eir and Sveta as well Director."

"Who?"

"Riley and Sveta Director. Operator, Panacea, and Riley are installing Sveta in her human form body right now." BT supplied through Emily and Meredith's drones.

"Did you engineer this attack so we would have to let them out of the sanitarium BT?" Emily growled out.

"I didn't know you thought so highly of me Director. Thank you." BT replied.

Meredith snorted "All right, settle down, lets deal with the Simurgh. Who is Artemis?"

"A cousin of Panaceas."

Emily sighed "Parahuman?"

"Healer, Brute, Combat thinker. Not as good as Panacea we don't think. Still better than Othala."

"Well it does sort of run in families." Meredith supplied. "Alexandria will be on scene shortly. Vista you are liaison for the titans until Operator arrives and can take command. You are seconded to her. Stay in your Titan, Tell the other pilots to stay in theirs as well."

Titanfall

"Vicky, it's in Killington. The Simurgh." Dean yelled the last as Vicky ran past, out the door and disappeared straight up. There might have been an odd double boom from her breaking the sound barrier. It could have been one of the dragon remotes they could see over the pass taking the interstate through the mountains. He turned to the others.

Lucy shrugged "Amy and Taylor had a thing at the parahuman sanitarium, a project of some kind. Vicky is headed there."

Amanda looked at Dean and the other wards "Uh, don't you have a thing?"

Carlos nodded and turned. Got his head pulled into a ferocious kiss and Dennis laughed, got the same treatment but less ferocious, plenty enough to shut him up, and led them away. The girls closed ranks around Consuela and Julie.

Ryuu trotted into the park and got scooped up and put in her Titan "Love you too BT. Vista Ryuu, I'm up. Where are we?"

"Getting rides, Head to the interstate. Dragon is sending a ship for you. BT is coordinating with her. Might need you to sit on your dad so put on your tear aways." Ryuu rolled her eyes and started changing in the cockpit.

Titanfall

"Yes Jim we are on interstate eighty nine northbound and moving at a sustained one hundred miles an hour. We are just keeping the Titans and their police escort in sight. Hold on! Jim! Dragon ships! Yes Dragon ships are coming in. Get closer Hector. What? No I don't care, go off road. I swear I'm buying one of those all-wheel drive Dodge pieces of bleep with the seven hundred horsepower! American muscle bieep's! Drive it like you stole it Hector! Where the bleep is that dragon going?" The image swung wildly and then steadied "Holy bleeping bleep! There's a titan behind us Hector! What? E brake turn this bleepr" You don't know how? What kind of latino are you? Bleeeeeeeeep bleep bleep bleep!"

Danny gaped at the TV and fell over laughing. Natalie was so fired.

Titanfall

The PRT agent looked at the two children and arched a brow. The girl huffed at her "Bookmaker and Yoda. Thinker support, Evac and combat." The agent scowled at the two kids whose heads and shoulders barely stuck up over the edge of the folding table. She recoiled backwards as the nine foot tall yeti appeared to grow out of the ground. And roared at her. She looked back at the little girl and blinked at the blue woman standing with her arm across the girls shoulder and a humming, glowing, sword in the other hand.

Miss Militia stepped up "Bookmaker, it is an Endbringer."

"Duh."

Hannah rolled her eyes "Fine, you two stick with me. And we are talking to your parents after."

The agent watched them walk off and turned back to the line. She blinked at the little old Asian lady on the chegway, knock off Chinese Segway, standing next to Lung in his steel dragon mask and Oni Lee in his demon mask and bandoleers. The little old lady spoke to her in Chinese. And smiled at her. She called for a translator and loosened her taser in its holster. Lung rolled his eyes "Lung, Oni Lee, Combat. Obaasan, observer."

"Matchmaker." The little old lady supplied.

"I don't get paid enough. Stand in the circle, transport in" and she looked at a countdown timer "Six minutes." Next!

"Whirlygig, where do I go to get a Legion?"

"How the hell did you get out? To Operator Industries, take a bank with you. Inside the circle, five and half minutes."

"On bail."

"Christ, this fucking town." The PRT troopers standing behind the agent shoulder's were shaking.

Titanfall

"How we doing BT?"

"Good Operator. The PRT response is ramping up. The Simurgh caught the Travelers at an intersection before they got to the interstate. They seem to be enjoying themselves sparring with her. Noelle ate Ballistic and Simurgh is busy killing the clones of him she is making. A gas station is the only collateral so far.

"I cannot wait to meet this girl!"

"Pay attention to the girl you are working on Riley, Eir, sorry. Still good Sveta?" Panacea barked and asked.

"It's all good Sis. Sveta knows me."

"It tickles." Sveta offered.

"I turned your pain receptors off. Want me to turn that off too?"

"No it's good. I think."

"OK fix this join here Sis, then we can do some testing but I think we are good. Probably want to work on all the joins for a minute or two if we are going to have to fight right away. Here, let me get another parts bucket. That one is about out."

"That bucket of pigskin Riley. This has enough to finish the joins in the muscle and membrane. We used up four fixing and armoring her. Plus that bucket of tungsten carbide dust. The nerves are good. I'm going to turn them all back on."

"Oh! Wow. That's so odd."

Legend asked "All good? Transport in five Dragon says." Over the drone network.

Taylor nodded "Yeah, She looks good. Let us test a little then we can get her in her suit."

Sveta looked down and tentacles shot out nearly invisible mouth like openings all over her body and covered her. Riley shook her head "Just us girls. Relax. Nice that those worked though."

Amy nodded unconsciously. "Here." she pulled a screen hanging from the ceiling around the bed leaving the three girls on the other side of it "Pull those back in and get dressed, yell if you need help."

The girls waited a moment then Sveta plaintively asked "Help?"

Amy smiled and stepped around the curtain "Oh. Okay. Yeah, never wore one before."

"Anything. Not that I remember anyway."

"Well you got the panties."

Riley nodded "Bra's, what a pain."

Taylor looked at her "Hmm, you need to change too."

"Ack!"

"Come on. You will need the cooling in the suit, plus it's all armored. And the helmet has the HUD."

"Still, bra's."

"Armored, and padded with ballistic gel. Cool and dry, or warm and dry, whichever you need."

Titanfall

Shadow Stalker looked at Rune as the dragon transport ramp dropped "Don't die."

Rune snorted "Get on the plane Stalker." They were at the head of the column of volunteers along with Regent. All of the inhabitants of the Disciplinary Barracks. Another Dragon transport had landed on the PRT side picking up those PRT people in the PRT side of the Barracks.

They got on board and into the nets and the transport lifted. Hard.

A short flight, less than ten minutes, most of that landing, and they were on the ground. Just in time to watch Vista, though they didn't know it was her yet, finish establishing the encirclement of the area with the titans in pairs and the titans begin launching drones.

Titanfall

"Not murder balls, oops, spoke to soon, now they are launching murder ball pairs." Lisa said holding the tissue under her nose while a medic held an icepack on her neck. Two Ice packs, one on each side. "Hey this ice deal works."

"Come by the shop, we can put a radiator in you. Medic, got that glucose running?" Amy asked over the net. Her voice coming from the ball drone hovering behind Lisa.

"IV in Ma'am. Glucose going in now." She spun the lock off the IV tube and it ran a stream, not drops, into the chamber used to observe flow.

Emily nodded "Thank you Panacea."

"Yeah thanks!" Lisa contributed then went back to watching a map screen, and three monitors full of flowing text.

"Operator?" Emily asked.

Amy's voice supplied "She is working with Eir and Sveta."

"Fine, now what about Artemis?"

Amy sighed "New Wave. Do we really want to do this now? We are two minutes from dropping."

"What? Ops near space!"

"No Director but we do have null grav and thrusters, it's easier to drop in than to land. Quicker too. Stand by."

Emily blinked and growled as every flat surface said "Stand by for Titanfall!" and one of the screens showed a dragon transport with its ramp open and four objects leaving it in flight. They all watched with open mouths as the Titans landed running. The transport fired its after burners and accelerated away.

"OK, back. I'm going to check the medical area with Eir and Artemis, Sveta and Operator are headed to Vista to do a battle handover."

"Operator Fury."

"Oh, hello Director. Let's see. OK, we have containment. The restaurant and gas station are a write off I think. The Travelers are doing more damage than the Simurgh. Well, those clones of the shooter guy. Ballistic, ok Ballistic. We are going to have to get him out of the clone maker cape. Man she is like huge and has all kinds of different parts. Scans show the actual cape is in there and whole though. Simurgh has them contained right at the intersection. BT shoot that idiot in the top hat. Wait' I'll do it. Give us some Music."

"Oh my god! Not Crazy Bitch! Operator! Goddamnit!" Emily snorted as flat surfaces stated playing the music.

They all watched, a little awed really, as the titans moved closing the containment and taking out the Travelers. Most of whom weren't fighting too hard really. "Is the Simurgh kill dancing on Ballistic clones like operator did on the Merchants, or is it just me?" The operations officer asked.

They all winced when Trickster got launched by a center mass hit. "Damnit Operator. Vicky go get that idiot, and the pieces, and bring him here. Come on Ri- Eir, Artemis, let's put this idiot back together. Vista, have some of the pilots bring the other ones too."

Everyone froze for a second when the Simurgh telekinetically ripped Ballistic from the mass of flesh that was the cloning cape and the resulting damage dropped her. "Goddamnit! Stop fucking people up! All of you! Just hold her there Simurgh. Somebody bring me Ballistic. I'll be there in a few minutes."

Everyone watched as the Simurgh held the cape on the ground with one arm, four wings, and a foot. "Operator! What are you doing?"

"Uh, helping Simurgh Director?" Hey Ryuu, take care of that clone- OK thanks." The lightning had arched out and burnt the clone to a cinder mid-way through Operators request.

"How does that not damage the Titan?" Armsmaster asked over the net.

BT responded "The Titans have been modified to accommodate their pilot's abilities, if necessary."

Imp's Titan appeared beside Operator and BT "Need help Boss Lady?"

"Yes, thanks Imp. Hang onto this, watch out, those ones bite. Ok, BT talk to Simurgh, I'll run the titan."

Golem and Pelter walked up and Golem began growing a granite case around the cloning capes body. Pelter watched and covered him with what looked like a shot putt in each hand.

BT relayed "Simurgh moved the travelers here to earth Bet from Aleph? From another earth during the attack on Madison. Then they did something. Drank some fluid from some vials they found. Some humans are apparently not that bright. The vials gave them powers, some of them. All of them? The data stream is a bit dense, and, recursive? Simurgh senses the past and the future and both are constantly changing. She is operating on a sort of consensus analysis."

Lisa snorted "Not that bright, understatement of the millennium."

Emily nodded "So, what's her plan BT?"

"She believes Panacea and Operator can modify the cloner capes abilities. Or remove them Director."

"Give me a minute. Trickster is back together. Eir and Artemis are finishing him up. Genesis is taking a minute. She was crippled before." Panaceas voice came.

Vista spoke up "Yes, Sundancer says she was in a wheel chair. Director I've put a lot of information in their restricted files."

Emily sat at t a terminal and pulled open the files on the Travelers. "Gemini? Well it isn't taken. OK for now the cloner is Gemini. Their normal associate is Changeling. Oh, not normal, a mimic, just extremely slow. They think." She skimmed quickly "Well, moving them back will not be possible. Plus they have about five years of legal problems coming up."

BT spoke up "Simurgh could move them back."

"And this member that the CUI got?" Emily asked.

"Stay right there Simurgh. You can go get him later if that's what they decide. Let's try diplomacy first. Don't look at me like that. How can you roll eyes you don't have? Oh nice. Pretty. Just for appearance though? Hey clothes! Better. How did you copy a pilot's uniform? You are never going to fit in a titan. OK, yeah, I guess you don't need one." Everyone watched Operator talk to the Simurgh.

Emily sighed "You realize you are going to be in M/S screening for weeks now Operator?"

BT replied "Simurgh isn't singing or trying to condition anyone."

Meredith cut in "The thinkers are looking at it."

Emily looked at Lisa. Lisa nodded "What BT said. She is actually communicating. Not brainwashing. Put one of those cold packs on top of my head will you Mark?" The female medic who had started the IV cracked the vial in a chemical cold pack and got out an ace bandage. "Oh, Duh, no extra hands, thanks Hannah."

Clock Blocker walked up to Operator "Want me to freeze her?"

Taylor frowned "I don't think touching her is a good idea. Not skin to skin anyway. Aside from these animal heads trying to take off my grippers. Golem will have her in granite except for her head soon."

Imp nodded "At least she stopped yelling."

"Yeah, I shut off most of her power. It was making her crazy. Not sure what I can do about the crazy. We'll fix the body up first maybe."

Legend nodded "Maybe the sanitarium."

Dragon contributed "Not sure the facilities could contain something it is taking an Endbringer and two titans to hold onto. Or that mountain Golem is growing. That is some pretty strong rock."

Golem nodded standing at the outcropping of granite he was touching "Thanks."

"Operator and Panacea can shut off her powers until we can sort it out?" Legend arched a brow.

Panacea walked up with Riley and Betty. "Let's see. Operator can I touch, say, her head?"

"I think so. If she swallows you I am mazering you out of there."

"Sveta modification Babe. I'm good." Panacea put her palm on Noelle's head and nodded "Yep that works. Now give me a hand Operator, let's link up and see what we can do here."

Legend smiled at the two titans literally holding hands. The news cameras probably couldn't see those entwined tentacle things.

AN: A non Endbringer fight, so what do you think of this?


	28. Chapter 28

Titanfall 28

"Babe your tentacles are getting a little friendly." Taylor smiled inside her helmet. One of her arm tentacles had reached back and a tendril of Amy's had come with it twining around her arm and sneaking under her sleeve. Now it was headed toward Amy's favorite spot, underboob. She liked to leave one hand on her chest right up under her breast while they were napping. It was sort of the spot Taylor had come to expect that hand, or a hand to be when waking up.

"These things are amazing. More nerves than a clitoris. I can taste you even. How does that work?"

"Uh, OK, wow. I got nothing." Taylor blushed so hard the cooling in the helmet picked up to the maximum.

"Still taste good too." Taylor scowled. She could hear the smirk in Amy's voice.

"Lovers! Data?"

"Is that the Simurgh? Does that count as singing?" Taylor asked on the private channel "Oh! Hey, what the hell? My power just data dumped the Simurgh." Taylor was still blushing. It had been like a video at thinking speed. Everything she and Amy had gotten up to in private.

"I know, mine did the same." Amy sounded a bit put out.

"Hey, no fantasies!" Taylor barked.

"How come your beefcake have no faces? Oh, I like that light skinned one."

"I could ask you why your super models have blond hair you know! That one is hot though, hey is that Missy? Amy! Why is she doing that to me? Oh nice outfit, that whip would hurt though. Is that Song on your leash?" Taylor asked.

"Oh my god shoot me now. Ziz is like nine." Amy moaned.

"Fully mature at instantiation." The words were bad but the density of the information that came with every word from the Simurgh was mind numbing.

Amy and Taylor froze at that data transmission. Amy finally brought the conversation back on track "OK, turned her powers off. Noelle's."

Taylor nodded then spoke "OK let me talk to em."

"Apple bottom jeans. Boots with the fur."

Taylor grinned even thought that had to be singing. "Oh nice Ziz. Do this."

Titanfall

Emily pinched the bridge of her nose as the song played from all the flat surfaces. "BT."

"Sorry Director it's the Simurgh, or Ziz as she prefers. She has copied my method."

"I quit."

"Oh no you don't, not before me." Meredith spoke up from her monitor pane.

Emily watched the screen "Are they doing a dance class? Is that Armsmaster? What the actual fuck? Somebody tell me what the hell is going on."

Lisa opened her mouth but BT's voice came over the speakers "Establish rapport Director. It isn't like we can contain the Simurgh should she not wish to be contained. I believe we could eliminate her. However, the release of energy would be catastrophic."

Emily looked at Tattletale who nodded and made an explosion sound and motion with her hands. "Think big bangs little brother. Maybe Super Nova. Ten to the sixtieth or so joules. Ground zero is not good. This solar system would be ground zero. "

Emily frowned "And if we had ever managed to sufficiently harm one this would be the result?"

"Nearly certainly. I will work on finding a method to deal with the energy released. I suspect it will take one of the tinkers though. String Theory has some promising work in her portfolio." BT replied.

"Fine. OK, I can actually see the establish rapport thing. Now Gemini and the other travelers?" Emily asked.

"Panacea and Operator have turned her powers off, temporarily. The entities can be creative in a limited way and have some self-repair capabilities. It will take further study. Meanwhile the PRT and courts will have to determine a disposition in their cases." BT supplied.

"We'll get back to you on that BT. Give us a few minutes."

Meredith chuckled "A few minutes. I have one of the president's aides on the line Emily."

"I have the Simurgh and a full Endbringer response in my region. I think I win. Tell him we are working on it very hard and there have been no fatalities, minor, very minor, property damage. The situation is under control. For the first time ever, when dealing with one of these things. He is safe in his shelter for now.

"We can let the thinkers watch for a few minutes while we look at the contingency plans. Most of which are now invalid."

"She wants to stay with Operator and Panacea. She's lonely." Everyone turned to Lisa and watched the medics check her pupillary response and vital signs. "I need new cold packs too. These are out."

'Hannah' shrugged and pursed her lips "Ice bath. Those were only supposed to be temporary. It is coming up now. Your body temperature is one o one already."

Lisa blinked "In my costume? I uh, never got it wet before?"

Emily sighed "We'll figure out something if it goes see through."

"I am working on her pilots' uniform. It will be ready in thirty minutes and will have a cooling system. Essential it will convert her body heat to energy to be stored so a high body temperature is not a problem. It has more capability to absorb heat than the human body does to generate it." BT supplied. Lisa grinned. Emily scowled.

Hannah shrugged "Ice bath until then."

"I will provide dry undergarments." BT supplied. Lisa was busy glaring at the stainless-steel tub being wheeled in and the cart loaded with bags of ice.

Titanfall

Vista shook her head in her titan "What the hell is taking them so long. Not that I mind the dance party, rather than the normal disaster, but it's been an hour."

"BT says other branches of the government, and other whole governments, keep chiming in." Taylor supplied

Rune walked over with Shadow Stalker "And what exactly do they think they can do about anything? You and BT are keeping Ziz busy learning. While learning about her. The Travelers are going to have to go to trial and that will take a whole investigation first. Which they will need Ziz to answer questions for. I guarantee you they get to go to the barracks as a result. Maybe on work release like Tattletale but they are going to do time. No way they don't after this shit. Then if Ziz hangs around they are going to pester you and BT to death talking to her for them."

"Help!" Ziz supplied.

Rune nodded "And then there is that. First finding all the Ziz bombs she identified in that data dump. Then making sure they aren't Ziz bombs anymore like she says they aren't.

"Meanwhile it is taking you and Panacea to keep her from making dangerous things. Although that gas station never looked that good the day it opened, I bet. Let's not even talk about the Diner across the road. Have you been in there? The freaking chrome would blind you."

"Triumvirate took off." Shadow Stalker supplied.

Rune nodded "Which isn't suspicious at all. Eidolon wasn't here, Ziz talks to BT, You talk to Legend, he and Alexandria take off, at top velocity."

Taylor sighed "Some things we can't talk about. We should be wrapped up here by in the morning though."

Vista emoted a shrug "Nothing new. So, want to get Bitch in a titan? Rune too of course? They can do their familiarization. The legions are all here."

"Waiting on word actually. They'll be in my custody. Not like BT will let them try to escape or anything anyway." Taylor shrugged.

"OK. I'm going to wrestle Ziz some more." Vista supplied. It was an interesting match up. Vista cheated space outrageously and Ziz had precognition. They were oddly evenly matched.

Amy popped out of her titan and knocked on BT's leg. He popped the hatch and scooped her up placing her in the cockpit with Taylor. Shadow Stalker grinned "That will be handy." Rune rolled her eyes.

In the cockpit Amy felt of Taylor as she squeezed into the pilot's couch thing with her. "Sleep Babe."

"You too."

"Not running the world. Didn't have to heal many. Haven't had to do Gemini yet. I'm good for a while. We can take shifts. I want to do some thinking about what exactly we are going to do to her anyway. I'll just be standing over there by her cage with a tendril around her neck."

"The one out of my top."

"Sure, close enough for hands now." Amy was smirking again. Taylor was glad they were still wearing their helmets.

Titanfall

Danny watched channel five, settled more now, not so breathless. He didn't care what the talking heads were saying as this was all new anyway. He just wanted to keep an eye on things. Taylor had called earlier. He could reach her in seconds. Another pair of eyes never hurt though.

Although it looked like Vista would be about all Ziz could handle. You couldn't even look at where they were wrestling, sparring, whatever. Nightmares lived there. Escher had nothing on the little blond girl. Who would have thought?

Titanfall

Jessica Rodriguez sat in the command position in the operations room. In another first, this Endbringer attack, if you could even call it that, had gone on longer than any, bar the Simurgh's original appearance where she had just drifted around for two weeks. Procedure said they went to seventy five percent manning at this point so the Director was down, or should be down for a nap and some off time, in her office. Jessica shook her head, if it kept on she would be relieved by Deputy Director Renick.

She looked at the three inch thick double alphabet tabbed SOP notebook in front of her. Someone had entirely to much time on their hands. Alternatively they were abusing the fuck out of the staffs. Or Dragon was reviewing the existing with BT and rewriting it all. The thing was still warm from the printer.

She glanced up at monitor and watched as Imp, had to be with the lime green and pink paint on the titan, sparred with the Simurgh. Apparently she could stranger even an Endbringer. She wrote down a note in case the battle captains missed that. All of the pilots ratings were going to be twelves if this kept on. The pilots had taken to 'Ziz' as they called her. Even the lone boy pilot. She smiled, of course with his pilot girlfriend over watching that whole interaction. Closely. With tungsten carbide putts in her hands, grippers, whatever.

Ryuu was still having problems getting Bitch, yes Bitch, at least not in public, into clothes, or a pilots uniform. Bitch would apparently rather just have the helmet on. With a wife beater, shorts and brogans. It was a bit funny. The troopers near them and the armbands having open mikes made it hilarious. Bitch was her normal monosyllabic self and Ryuu was, well, courting her? Something. She had the patience of a stone. She should look into teaching grade school.

Operator and Panacea had disappeared into BT and not a peep had been heard from them since. Well, voice channel. Panacea was apparently using a massive amount of processor and memory running simulations. The two new pilots, Eir and Artemis, were in that synthetic environment with her, and they were working on rebuilding Gemini? Well according to the thinkers and Dragon.

That fog coming off that warm water upwelling in the bay was going to be trouble if it was still happening when the fucking EPA jerkoffs woke up.

Rune and now Shadow Stalker were in a legion, Runes legion, the one with day glow orange panels on the back. That would need to be watched. Rune wasn't signaling for help though. They thought they were so clever. Like they were fooling anyone. Would a legion rock?

The PRT, the government in general really was having a meltdown. It was a contest between the government and the PHO which could melt the farthest apparently. And that was with BT and Dragon throttling the nets. The Protectorate not so much as the

Protectorate leaders were all in some kind of conference network Armsmaster had going. Legends deputy, Rime, was sitting in for him as was Alexandria's deputy. What was that guy's name? Immaterial right now.

At least the command authorities had stopped being, well, idiots really. Though Alexandria and Legend disappearing was unprecedented. Eidolon was Eidolon. Lately he was liable to be off stalking some S class threat somewhere as he was to be at work. At least it wasn't cats in trees?

The Protectorate and PRT were busy intimidating villains who were getting antsy looking at the money playing with the titans. Along with the non piloted legions of course. Amazing only a few of them had been foamed and two shot with that thing that lit them on fire. Artemis was practicing healing on those. Or rather had. The rest had apparently gotten the memo. The lawyers would be sorting out whether that was truce breaking, or failure to follow instructions, for a thousand years.

So the US government, legislative branch, was in a all night session. In their classified bunker at the Greenbrier. Certainly good policy would come out of sleep deprived idiots. Good thing was them going there limited the amount of staff jerkoffs they could take to two, instead of the thirty or forty some of those idiots had. And all was quiet on the East North East front, for now. What the hell is that crowd doing? "Crowd control this is the Law, what the hell is that crowd doing. First where did they even come from?"

"Law, Contain Five, People from Killington. They weren't in shelters and got tired of hunkering down in the hotels and condo's."

Jessica turned to the operations second "And they weren't evacuated why?"

Ops sighed "We are getting to it. The National guard is low on trucks and we had trouble finding bus companies willing to risk equipment. Actually if they all gather there it will make it easier. Let them get cold and bored watching the nothing and they will volunteer to get on trucks and busses. I'll move a screening and road head team there."

"And that will free up hotel space for us to rest more troops and capes." Jessica nodded.

Titanfall

Rebecca looked at Paul "Nearly catatonic."

Paul looked at David and nodded. "At least he isn't trying to kill Mord Nagg?"

Rebecca sighed "Is there even a therapist good enough for this that can understand the need for secrecy?"

"BT. Have Panacea do an implant on him." Paul shrugged. "BT could clone off a instance just to work with David. We can put them on a world somewhere."

Rebecca opened her mouth, closed it, opened it again, then closed it and her eyes for a moment. "He knows already. He hasn't tried to take advantage. He does sort of have us over a barrel here."

"And 'the organization serving a useful purpose, but requiring some reorganization' wasn't ominous at all." Paul snorted.

"Sadly he appears to be correct. So David was controlling the endbringers, brought them into existence, something. BT can use them however. Sure, why not, he can use anything to become one apparently. Parahumans, normal humans, government systems, the media, the computer network of the entire planet. As long as Taylor Hebert is happy and has Amy Dallon near her its all good." Rebecca was exhausted.

Paul shrugged "For which we should be grateful? I mean he could blow this all up. We would be in the birdcage. There are no words for how fucked up this, Cauldron, was and is. I struggle to believe Hero was a part of it. He didn't seem the type at all."

"I know. Until you knew him better you'd think a good wave was his ultimate goal. We had some serious arguments over it, that laid back attitude." Rebecca nodded.

Paul smiled then frowned "I'm so sorry. I can't believe you haven't killed Contessa. I thought you two were starting to get closer. I had no idea you were..."

Rebecca snickered "David still can't believe it. Do you think he is gay?"

"No! Erh, definitely not. Bromance maybe?"

Rebecca nodded slowly "Contessa was, is, a friend. We talked about it, after. I spent a couple weeks trashing a solar system when I first hit the anger stage. The shrinks tell me I haven't left it yet, not really. I just coped and turned the anger onto villains, mostly."

"You aren't as happy generally."

"Are any of us? Oddly the appearance of Operator and BT has been helping. I mean, he is very confident he can kill Scion, the Endbringers, whatever else shows up. We have seen him destroying worlds."

Paul gaped at her a moment "You do remember you have to breath right? We can't exactly live on a destroyed world, or the pieces of one. I'm not sure we can get a ride on Taylors lifeboat, that isn't even built yet. I don't think we can count on BT not destroying all the earths in the multiverse chasing down and killing Scion."

"If it holds for a while though He will be ready and have Taylor ready. Right now we need to focus on the Simurgh hanging out with Operator and being 'helpful', getting the other endbringers to be 'helpful' and figuring out what to do with David."

Paul nodded "Reorganizing Cauldron to keep BT from killing us too I think."

Rebecca shook her head "Speaking of killing people. Meredith is going to murder us. Or talk BT into doing it."

Paul shrugged "I thought she was doing well."

"Are you trying to say something?"

Titanfall

"So the Simurgh is a lonely preteen, who was mastered, and wants friends. She seems to have started befriending two, no, three, S class threats in Brockton Bay. Meanwhile, she has 'fixed' all the people she broke, unless they are dead of course, and wants to go fix the physical damage at the sites she and her brothers have attacked in the past. Her 'brothers' the other two Endbringers. This is supposedly all good." The president arched a brow at Meredith. "You aren't getting any more budget out of this." He paused How exactly do you propose I sell this to Congress and the people of the United States? We'll worry about the other nations once we figure that out."

While Meredith was formulating her response an alert scrolled onto the bottom of the screens they were both looking at. The president groaned "Leviathan, in Japan, building land. Apparently he has been at it for hours, piling up rocks. Some the size of mountains, and now is, somehow, spraying dirt and sand onto the rocks. Which is why they found him." He looked around the situation room "I'm a lame duck, but can I quit?" He looked at Meredith "If you try I'll have you shot."

Meredith chuckled "I know you can't Sir. Arrest sure. Three hots and a cot sound nice right now. OK, I'll get the thinkers working on how to sell the Simurgh deal, I am going to flex some assets to observe Leviathan, though the Simurgh did say she would get them to help. I guess Levi was in the Marianas trench. He likes to hang out there."

Titanfall

Lisa looked at the sheets on the bed. She was in the under suit but it is where most of the cooling was. The vents in the full suit had melted that chair in ops, or the fabric on it. BT was impressed, with both the energy harvesting, and having to just vent some heat. He was 'fascinated' and wanted Panacea to take a look.

Titanfall

Carol looked around inside the titan then put the helmet on. She keyed up the intercom "Did we know these had these barely two people couch things?"

"Dad taking up to much space man spreading? Crystal and I have lots of room."

Sarah came up on the net "Neil and I kind of like it. For just one night."

Carol rolled her eyes at the eww's "Eric, Chris behaving?"

"He put that helmet on and froze. We have two couch things. I think he is in a mental fugue. Nope snoring. Tired I guess."

Titanfall

"What did your mother say Bookmaker? Its past your bedtime." Miss Militia gave the girl a 'look'.

Dinah sighed "Fine. Come on Yoda."

Miss Militia nodded "I'll be right over here in this chair." She was dying to laugh. She had skyped Bookmakers mother who had her camera covered. Bookmaker had mommed! her way through some very pointed instructions. Yoda's mom had joined the call, camera covered as well, and joined right in momming the two parahuman children. Now they were in a hotel room with a yeti and a blue woman with a functional light saber guarding it. Miss Militia had agreed to stay in case the projections faded when Yoda slept.


	29. Chapter 29

Titanfall 29

Emily cackled. Jessica eyed her warily. She snorted "I got rid of half of these. Now they are the JDFs problem. More of them are bound to get comfortable and decide taking a shot at the Simurgh is a good idea.

"Meanwhile, there is every chance Behemoth will show up somewhere and start fixing things, that will further reduce this mess to a third, then we can work on normal. Or the new normal. The investigators are busy as they can be turning over every rock the Travelers passed near, much less over. We are going to set records on that investigation and embarrass the fuck out of Chicago and Madison. The ones still alive from Madison anyway.

"The Swiss have decided the Simurgh fixing everything in the country remotely is a good start on reparations from her. Little Zizzy has been sandbagging, hard.

"State can worry about all these others demands. We can concentrate on what is going on on the ground here."

Jessica nodded "And this report of volcanic activity at Newfoundland and Kyushu?"

"Behemoth helping but not sticking his head up out of the core? Works for me. A week and the islands are back someone estimated. That's with him not going to fast and displacing the water into tidal waves. Japan is happy as they gain two Kyushu's worth of land back. Leviathan already having started a Kyushu sized addition to the main island.

"The precious metal, rare earth, or gemstone rods growing out of people's property, or right in front of them, weighing enough to pay off the VSL, the US VSL, nine point eight million dollars, on each individual to their next of kin won't even crash the economies supposedly as the actual substance is varied and somewhat regional. Plus mining was nearly nonexistent because of Behemoths previous activities destabilizing whole tectonic plates. The former owner of that smelter got enough of all the metal ores and minerals he used to use to put the place back in operation. If he had electricity for the carbon arc furnaces. Supposedly he is working on it. It will put that whole region back on its feet. Not that New York City was suffering too much but the region was having trouble, especially that industrial part of Jersey. Won't make up for losing his whole family but what else could they do? Apparently even they can't raise the dead."

"And this report Eidolon is allegedly responsible for the Endbringers? When Costa Brown ask BT to apprehend him?" Jessica asked.

Emily made a warding gesture "Shhh. He is allegedly already apprehended and that investigation is above our echelon of maintenance. And pay grade.

"I bet it is more than alleged though as a vast silence has descended about it."

"Cover up? That would be a horrible idea." Jessica blinked.

"Not so much cover up as 'no comment about a current investigation' someone very high in the food chain is dotting all the I's and crossing all the t's. If he really didn't know his power was doing it, I have no ideas, and I am the parahuman cynic remember. It's just too horrible to imagine. Some pretty stupid laws are bound to come out of it and we made to enforce them though. It might be time to retire if it looks like the elected idiots are going to start a civil war with the parahumans. And that's before the fourth Endbringer decides to not play nice anymore."

"Taylor or BT?"

"Is there a difference? I mean haven't they pretty much become one. Try to hurt her, with some stupid ill thought out law and he will go mazer and plasma bomb, try to hurt him and she will go orbital bombardment. Or call for thousands of Titans. Six of one half a dozen of another really. Either way normal humans lose and lose big." Emily shrugged.

Jessica looked at the instructions she had been given "Is that why you said to let this bus through?"

"Cheerleaders. Dancers, whatever, a lot of their team is already there, nothing bad is happening, they have some kind of competition coming up. It's their whole life right now. If they can pull it off and nothing bad happens it's another step toward normal."

Jessica nodded "Little Zizzy as you called her is down to nine feet tall, what you are going to do when they put her on the team?"

Emily laughed "You are relieved Commander. Go get some rack time. Good question though. Above our paygrade. I'll send a runner to wake you up."

Titanfall

Danny looked at Missy "I'll sleep when we have gotten there and the PRT hasn't thrown us all in jail."

Missy waved him off "They are fine. We called them."

Danny nodded "And some flunky not saying no equals it's all good so two busses and the phone roster activated and we are all driving to Killington High School to use their gym."

Missy nodded "And the panel truck for the sound gear. The support folks to set that up. Oh and the practice had to be open to the public. Apparently they only have one giant shelter, in an old granite mine, and it's like right next door. I guess people are bored because normal procedure has the PRT blanking communications to the area except theirs. Plus all the capes are standing around with nothing to do."

"Jamming. It's called jamming."

Henni nodded to the front windshield "Well, we will know in a minute. PRT checkpoint."

There was a moment at the checkpoint where the trooper looked at the door, turned sideways and came up the stairs followed by her battle buddy after he dropped his plate carrier. It was a beauty and the beast pairing. She was tiny, he was enormous, and he nearly didn't fit without the gear. "Morning folks. Need to see photo ID, student IDs will do. Your other members are moving to the gym now, the ones on the list you sent us and the Simurgh. That means you will have to wear these armbands as well."

She turned to her partner who had been handed a cardboard box and took one and held it up. She then ran through how to turn it on register it. "Once the Simurgh leaves and the event is over, Dragon will send a signal and it will come unfastened. Then you just drop it in the mail."

Song blinked "So we are Endbringer fighters?"

"Wave seven. You get the tax credit and everything." The trooper nodded.

The parents on the bus were hesitating right up until then. The tax credit was relief from all taxes for the year. City, county, state, and federal, including sales tax. Businesses were sent list and you were given a number. In their case the number would start with the letter K and the numeral seven, then be followed by numbers indicating the order they activated the armbands in until the wave was declared full. The next wave would be K eight.

There were other benefits as well, reduced tuition at Vermont state universities, and any they had reciprocal agreements with, so New Hampshire, New York, Massachusetts, and Maine for one, massively reduced, nearly free really, for them and their children. In their children's case too. This was probably worth getting woken up by your child at four o'clock in the morning.

Plus they had stopped by Dunkin. Hadn't those people been surprised when their store got cleaned out. Good thing most businesses were closed as the Endbringer attack was still going on. Got to love immigrants working for that dollar and never closing ever. The wives loved the tea too. Those folks could mash a cuppa as they called it. Coffee was a bit meh but still Dunkin. Good hot black Box o' Joe, none of that fru fru latte crap from Morbucks.

Titanfall

Song stood at the door to the women's locker room and looked at the mirror varnished floor. A sprung floor that hadn't been there yesterday allegedly. It was enormous! The things they could do here! She turned and looked at Operator, Taylor, no question now. She had pulled off her helmet in the women's locker room, and blushed to her roots. Song had too. She had been in her fantasy lovers hands hundreds of times by now, she had… oh my gods! Melissa smirked at her "And your mom is right there." She pointed Mrs. Kim out maliciously "Front row center."

Song looked at her mom, then back at Melissa "You are a bitch. But you are my bitch. I'll make sure you get a chance at the piece too, not just the matinee piece. Thanks!" Melissa wanted to glare at her rival but instead smiled hugely. Then squawked when Song hugged her.

They peaked out the door at the Clark Bots helping set up, being ushers, and standing around as security, with the comically enormous rifles slung across their fronts. The crowd was amazingly calm.

Missy passed the two girls and stepped up to a podium that had been set up "OK. This is the first time we have done a practice with the general public" She paused "And national press as spectators. So let me introduce the team." Missy read off the names and positions in the troop starting with the freshman, the freshman principle dancer last and Song pecked Melissa on the cheek and swatted her on the butt sending her out of the locker room. Melissa managed not to rub her butt cheek and give a nice curtsy. Song hit hard!

Missy moved through the sophomores and then "Joining us today, Ziz!" Ziz trotted out and curtsied. She was about seven feet tall and built proportionately like Taylor. In other words like a female MMA fighter, with boobs. She was also in a leotard and point shoes. There was a vast silence and then Danny started clapping. The capacity crowd clapped and stomped their feet in the bleachers like a rowdy basketball crowed on a Friday night. They appreciated Ziz taking out the threat of the Travelers. Operator and Her crew containing the whole thing as well.

Titanfall

The networks had managed to come up with some sleepy looking dance coaches, it was seven o'clock in the morning after all, and were preempting everything. In NBCs case they had Prima Ballerina Assolutas Anneli Alhanko, who was in New York for some teaching at Juilliard. Along with Jeff Edwards the ballet director of Juilliard and Linda Kent the director of Julliard's modern dance program.

The anchor looked at the dance people as the dancers went through warm ups. Anneli scoffed "Dance is hard work, you must warm up. This is standard. The Prima is correct to warm up the principles and corps de ballet."

Jeff nodded "I'll be interested to see this little match girl piece. I've seen the video that was posted to PHO. It's a powerful piece. I understand they have expanded it but not shown it in total yet, holding it in reserve for the national competitions I think."

The anchor hoisted a brow "They have an Endbringer on the team?"

"Reportedly a person who was mastered? I think we shouldn't let our prejudices run away with us. This Ziz has been nothing but helpful if you can separate the nuggets of truth from the gibberish that the PHO has become. Speaking of which why are they a more up to date source than the news agencies? I mean we had to learn about volcanic activity in Japan and Canada from the PHO?" Linda Kent returned with some heat.

"Shhh they are going to start a warmup piece." Anneli hissed at the others. The dancers were all in a square on half the court, including the wards, and the music came up, Rihanna's We found love. The audience, live, and watching at home over breakfast, watched as the dance people were intently silent and focused. The cameras focused on their faces in a spilt screen of the dancers.

After the music died and Taylor did her split to standing move helping Amy who had stayed with her move for move and Anneli wiped at her eyes "I have read of and seen news of this Brockton Bay hell. Now I can imagine it. It's all there in that dance, the fighting, and constant, never stopping, struggle. Yet love. This piece. I will ask if I can do this. I don't know if I can though, the principles of the piece are Hebert and Dallon and they love, so, so much. I'm not sure I love that much."

They all paused as 'Love the way you lie' came up and Ziz danced in front of the stoic Armsmaster. At the end, Ziz on the ground at Armsmaster's feet, all the dance commentators on all the networks drew in a breath. The three on NBC leapt from their seats clapping and shouting Brava! Jeff Edwards nodded "These people are the force in modern dance, Ziz used Armsmaster as a stand in for who we all know held her prisoner for the last nine years."

Linda nodded "And he played his part perfectly, staying perfectly still, when we know he can dance in that armor as we saw on the video yesterday. I pity whoever they are going against at Nationals."

Jeff nodded "And we haven't even seen the celebrated piece, this is the warm up still."

The anchor chimed in "A bit cart before the horse really, they have states in three days."

Anneli laughed brightly "And what judge in their right mind has not already given them the win. They could have those clumsy Ward boys in their farcical mask do all their routines and they have still already won. Really, who in the nation could be this good at this level? Truth, most of the professional companies in the US do not dance like this. Not technically perfect, but the emotion, you can feel it over the video even. To be there is a privilege. To see it is a privilege. To be there? Ah, what I wouldn't give."

Jeff motioned to the monitor they were watching "This is the lineup for the little match girl piece. That's the freshman principle dancer. This will be the matinee version. The music came in and the three looked at each other and sat forward "The main show piece. Kim injured?" Jeff breathed.

She wasn't but had been a sweetheart. Melissa would be even more grateful when the invitation to Julliard arrived in three weeks. Along with most of the company sophomore and above, and several of the freshmen. She would start in their summer sessions but never leave Operators Company, as it came to be known. The dance people waxed lyrical. After the anchors had to go to commercial to let them put themselves back together from being in tears. Even more so when Song did her version of the piece. Taylor was praised lavishly as well, disbelief that she had been dancing less than a month was freely expressed. The gym had exploded and the stomping would have brought down any other bleachers, ones not rebuilt by Ziz.

Anneli noted the obvious love Song had for Taylor but said nothing. The other dance people as well. It probably helped the piece, as that love was not returned the same way. There was love there, but not romantic love.

All of this really didn't matter to the people of Killington, the townspeople. That gym with its sprung hardwood floor would be the holy of holies for dance companies and never used by the school for any other activity again. Even after six months of investigation by the PRT cleared it. The school itself becoming a powerhouse known to give Arcadia a run for their money in dance and gymnastics competitions in the face of that was not unexpected really. Even after what came in the next week. If they were a dancer and could get there, they wanted to dance on that floor.

Melissa and Song both, Along with Johnson, brought some needed relief with the matinee piece, after they had both done the significant parts of the main piece with Taylor. There wasn't a dry eye in the house, even amongst the villains. Rune handed Shadow Stalker a tissue and smiled at her gently while using the one she had gripped in her left hand.

The cheer routines raised the mood again. Especially Ziz with the JV squad and the JV captain climbing her like a tree after the standing ovation they got. Songs flight through the rafters, thrown by Taylor and Caught by Ziz, drew oohs and aws as did the other flyers.

Other team captains and coaches were torn, despair on one hand at having to compete against this team, joy on the other as their sport was catapulted into the stratosphere.

Titanfall

Meredith looked at the video monitor showing the situation room. The president eyed her chagrinned. She shrugged "Embrace the suck Mr President."

"You were never a Marine Chief Director, Sentiment noted however."

Titanfall

Back in the gym, at the end of a two hour practice Missy stepped up to the podium "OK gang, you guys have been great, this is the end though. This is our new signature piece, we are after all from the Bay."

Amy sighed "Oh no."

The Clark Bot DJ worked his equipment and the sound came up when all the team was on the floor, some in skirts and shells, some in leotards, and a few in yoga shorts and sports bras. The base beat hit then Low starting from 'applebottom jeans' blasted out over the smiling team and roaring stomping dancing in place crowd. One camera was on Armsmaster dancing in place.

The dance was all of Taylor and BTs moves choreographed into a dance. Part of the dance included Amy's face palm and then peaking from the video of the merchant fight. The team did it then grinned at the pouting Amy.

When they finished and while the team was all in a hopping pile in the middle of the floor one of the support members stepped up and read a disclaimer into the sound system saying the music was all performed by the band and chorus of Arcadia High school with permission from the original artist. Not that anyone could hear, as the walls were shaking from the cheering.

Titanfall

Anneli arched a brow at the anchor as the image from the gym faded to black. The other two dance commentators just grinned and chuckled.

Across the country dance team captains and coaches nodded, put on their serious faces and got to work. A look at another teams practice like this was unprecedented. They might be able to at least compete rather than just getting humiliated. Even the damn Wards were decent. Not at the rest of team's level, except Vista, she had to be cheating somehow, but as good as their catchers. That Johnson was a male lead dancer. He was wasted on football.

The cameras had actually stayed on and got video of fifty star wars characters suddenly appearing and dancing. The producers got that little addition after the commercial break and all the dance commentators smiled as the tiny parahuman in the Jedi robes and a mask and his partner in the little gangster three piece suit, wingtips and hat ran among them. Then they gave serious commentary on the technique. Melissa doing the little match girl climbing thing with the wampa was cute as hell. She didn't do the lift after looking at the six inch claws. She did sit on its shoulder grinning though.

Titanfall

Frank Columbo watched and made some calls. That kid would need protected from Lucas Film those Disney fucks were trying to buy the franchise too. Probably kill it like they did everything. Hmm, maybe that meant Lucas needed money? The kid being able to make those projections could be handy for him.


	30. Chapter 30

Titanfall 30

"I'm calling it." Emily nodded.

Meredith, as Chief Director, shook her head, "You are not. The response is moving to Brockton Bay following the busses and panel van and we will check Killington. Krichek is moving the after attack recovery team there and will report to me with a dotted line to you. As is normal." She looked at the sour face Emily was making and rolled her eyes in the private video conference call. "Look at it this way, you are going to get a shit load of funding and manpower for as long as it last. Plus Brockton Bay will be able to tap the relief funds like Killington now can. Killington already dropped a request for five hundred million dollars on 'shovel ready' relief efforts. I think it was their entire public works backlog from the last fifty years. I had to step on the mayor giving the Simurgh the keys to the city, or I will, after he clears M/S screening."

"I'm too old for this shit."

"Pull the other one, you at least had a Panacea. Get your rhythm going. I think the Simurgh has adopted Operator, or is being adopted by the Arcadia Dance and Cheer team. You may be in for a long haul. And if I have to remind you, the Swiss found out it can turn ugly."

"And then they got an essentially new country."

"Doesn't make up for the dead, or living in hell for nine years."

Emily nodded "Speaking of which?"

Meredith sighed "He is in custody. It doesn't look good. Get your people ready for the idiocy that is about to happen when it comes out powers are doing things even the people that have them don't know about.

"That's before he is even all the way out of the mental breakdown he has had over it. Fortunately he made a good start on the S class threats, Alexandria and Legend have picked up where he left off trying to get them all before the shit hits the fan."

Emily grinned "Sorry. Fuck, sorry really, but I can't stop grinning."

Meredith narrowed her eyes "Bitch. I'll get you, and your little dog too!" She sighed "Why we get the big bucks I guess?" Emily snorted, there weren't enough bucks for this shit.

Titanfall

Danny looked around the bus amazed. Every seat was full, and they had chartered two more in Killington. Three hundred odd people, and one Endbringer. Who seemed a nice enough preteen girl. And he would know, he had had one. Imagine if Doctor Curly Hair had had powers? He shuddered. Henni leaned into him "You OK?"

Danny nodded "Just had a thought."

Henni grinned "A preteen with S class powers?" Danny nodded mutely. "Some people worry about it a lot. Most parahumans are really young. Lots of research says young people's brains are different, hence different laws, or rather courts, for them.

"What do you think of Bookmaker and Yoda?"

Danny looked at the two and Miss Militia one back behind Taylor and Amy who had Ziz and Clockblocker across the aisle. He smiled. At least Clockbocker didn't look like he was going to pee in his pants anymore. Even though everyone suspected Ziz let him freeze her. After all, precog right? She could have dodged probably. Plus Dennis had a nosebleed after that Amy had to fix. Ziz had apologized though. In her normal information dense taciturn way. And wasn't that interesting. How much information each of her communications could contain.

Danny looked at the bus driver. That guy needed watching. 'I've had worse on the bus' my ass. What, did he normally have the four horsemen of the apocalypse as passengers? "Where to today Conqueror? Same for War and the rest? Cover your mouth when you cough please Death." Henni laughed "Said that out loud then? Where did that box o joe go?"

Henni smiled "Another donut too? One of the Boston cream filled ones?"

"Yes please!"

Titanfall

Amy, snuggled into Taylor, leaned back enough to look at her "All right Babe?" She asked in the net.

Taylor huffed "This isn't going to last. People are going to be idiots."

She felt Amy smirk "So we didn't go too far in the shower then?" She giggled as Taylor's thoughts were completely derailed. That little replay was nice too. Sure she had been an active girl when younger, so the hymen wasn't a problem, hadn't even had to use her power, teeter totters should have warnings, but that shower, and what they had done, had been way different, rearranged her or something. Surprised the crap out of Taylor too. The look on her face, then the second look. Well it was obvious she had enjoyed it. Romance shomance. A hot shower and that was all she needed. Taylor too. Plus it was the right time so no plan B. Taylor had after all been fully functional. Several times. Got good quick too. Maybe being a girl first helped? Not like she had anything to compare it to. Helped her for sure. Lots. Who knew they could run together like that? Freaking out when it first happened hadn't helped, or had helped the next one maybe. Thank god for gym water heaters. Amy giggled. Taylor glared at her then leaned in and kissed her. They got cheers and catcalls. Not least from Ziz in the net.

Missy looked at Vicky. "No cheering or jeering from you? You normally tease the crap out of them."

Vicky shrugged "Something changed. They haven't said anything but I think they are official official."

Missy nodded "We will have to watch and help. Each other's first I bet. Which could help actually. Uh, Amy can't work on herself so she is uh."

"All girl? Don't think it matters really but I bet Betty or Riley can fix it if they want." Vicky looked at Riley sitting with Sveta, then Betty sitting with Song.

"We aren't even bothering with the rules anymore are we?"

Vicky shrugged "Team business and these are the parents," She looked at Miss Militia "And friends, people who won't talk anyway. Not like the Protectorate doesn't know most identities pretty soon after they find out you are a parahuman, they just never use it against you."

Missy nodded "Courting Dinah and Helmuth pretty hard. Or their parents anyway."

"Those two are lucky this was this new kind of Endbringer deal. I've been to a few fights with Panacea, just guarding her. It's horrible. Can't believe their parents let them go." Vicky said.

Missy nodded "Ran away, first their parents knew was Miss Militia calling them. After she winkled out who they were. Emotional blackmail for the win. Grounded for life I hear.

"We can work some of Helmuth's things into the routines I bet, or just have him have the characters do it."

Vicky nodded "Arcadia middle too so it should be good. If the lawyers can keep Lucas off him."

"We can always get him some of those knock off figurines, Dapme Dalilama, Sanakin Spacewalker, and those." Missy offered.

"His name though, unless he changes to Doya, or something." Vicky looked at Missy mouthing Dapme Dalilama while rolling her eyes, and smiled. "So what do you think of Hopeless Place with paint balls? I mean it is really a combat routine, all of Taylors are, but that would be too much maybe?"

Missy frowned "Logistical nightmare, how are we going to get them cleaned up and changed for the next act if they get hit."

"Get them good and use targets on stage." Vicky postulated.

"Balls break in barrels Vicky."

"Shhh!" The pair looked up at Ziz and she nodded to Taylor and Amy, who were asleep on each other. They joined in the dawhs.

The bus driver looked in his mirror and shook his head at the giant robots easily keeping pace with the bus. And those were the close ones. More were out there alongside the route going cross country. The Simurgh wasn't going to get to do anything. That one had that big ass sword that cut the Squealer tank in half across its back.

Titanfall

Ziz, she liked that, continued to work locating the native species and targeting the compensation for One. She ran his simulations and models out into the future as far as she could to get him data. She also continued to assist Two with his efforts. Across all the earths.

Meanwhile she planned the demise of the host/shard pairs that were causing egregious mayhem in her ordered sphere. Some disorder was to be encouraged, growth was the goal after all, but some of these just needed to go. Noelle's dead shards were one of those.

Now however there was a whole new opportunity. Between Shaper, Administrator and the other entity level intelligence, bah, more intelligent than the idiot certainly, perhaps more intelligent than the Thinker even, things could be different, were wildly different, in millions of futures.

All of that was running in background however as she observed Shaper and Administrator and their host. All of them obviously intended to make new, shards and host. That was the point of that activity in the shower after all. Host apparently had to practice a lot. Shaper and Administrator seemed to find it useful as well. They had exchanged much data. They could build a bud that was going to be very powerful. Several buds if their host plans worked out. She would have to devote some time to this. Processor cycles the machine entity called them. His beams weren't golden, they were an angry red, at least in all those futures. Still they worked well enough. If their purpose was destruction anyway.

Meanwhile in the short term there were some host, some in leadership positions, who were going to have to be nudged toward the correct supporting behavior. Or eliminated. Guide could probably be led into that. The host/shard combination had proven useful in that regard in the past.

Now, years of questions and doubt, the host species needed to feel useful generally, while they straightened out the mess Father had made, and it would all be back in the right path.

Titanfall

Jessica blinked "What?"

The JAG chuckled "My reaction as well. OK simple as I can make it, some of this is alleged, one of the networks had a commentator who took off on the Simurgh being held as a slave essentially for nine years. We think that got people thinking about some things and someone put together that she is technically nine years old. Just be glad they haven't realized that makes Leviathan fifteen and Behemoth nineteen."

Jessica snorted "Oh but they will."

Claude Debussy, Esq., winced and continued "At any rate that got them up in arms, especially given her new, as my legal assistant said, cuddly, appearance. So the child welfare organizations and Youth Guard got up this morning, watched the morning shows, got on their phones to each other and their pet lawmakers and, well, here we are. They want to know the five W's of her living arrangements, and they want someone they can roast over a slow fire. Then they want her home situation improved and supervised closely. They have pretty much all gotten together in lock step and are marching on State Capitols and Washington."

Jessica pinched the bridge of her nose "Fuck, my life. And I am supposed to tell the boss what exactly? It's the Simurgh, She stays where the fuck ever she wants to. Are these morons going to make the government refund NASA so they can build her an orbital habitat? She does spend about ninety percent of her time on orbit."

Claude made a note "Good, that will distract them. Keep those ideas coming. I'd just tell her, though I do have a briefing paper though. I sent it to the Director and the staff. TL:DR for her right now though as she is waiting on the busses, over our strenuous protest."

"Death wish from having to deal with all this bullshit. I see why." Jessica grunted while rooting in her official inbox. "All right, I'll let her know on the command net. You put on that headset. She is bound to have questions. Fury, this is Valkyrie."

Titanfall

"What?" That was the fifth what of the communication so far. She really needed to move this along. "Erh, Valkyrie, Fury, OK, I watched that show too. They are quick off the mark, which means they are fully energized and Mary Mastersen will be down here harassing me shortly. I'll get Sergeant Washington to deal with her. He always distracts her."

On the other end of the communication Jessica grinned. Sergeant First Class Washington, the NCOIC of the PDD, VIP Protection, of ENE distracted a lot of people at six foot eleven and five hundred pounds. Plus he was a sweet man, right up until you did something that he didn't want you too, then he sighed and stopped you, no matter what it took. "Roger."

"Valkyrie get a strike team up to secure wherever she is staying if it is here in town and not back on Orbit. Which is my first choice for her as we discussed. Get the Wards Facility managers up too. They can do a health and safety inspection on the location once we know it."

"Roger." Jessica had no idea what could hurt an Endbringer but it would show they were doing what they could. "The convoy is at the city limits, still on the route to Arcadia. ETA eleven minutes. The cops are controlling traffic."

On her end Emily looked around. What traffic? The streets were deserted.

Titanfall

Danny stood up and gave Ziz a flat look at the glare she was sending him. She drew her head down in her shoulders and Danny nodded at her. Clockblocker watched in awe. Ziz just got parented!

He walked to Amy and Taylors seats and looked down at them smiling gently. Then he reached over and touched Taylors shoulder. "Taylor, you need to wake up. We are nearly there." He smiled as Taylor woke, looked around, then checked her mouth and Amy's hair. Her head had been resting on Amy's. "No drool?"

Taylor shot him a muzzy kind of glare as she tried to wake Amy who had turned into some kind of octopus. She also blushed as the octopus's hands roamed a bit. She sighed when he grinned back. "How long were we asleep?" She asked after looking out the windows.

"About an hour, little over." Danny answered. "Apparently the PRT is meeting us at Arcadia."

"Why?"

Danny blinked and looked pointedly at Ziz. Who looked sheepish and transmitted a 'Sorry'.

Amy huffed "Not your fault. They are going to be stupid for years."

"Ahem." Miss Militia arched a brow. She got two back and sighed "They are a little excited, confused, something. The ambulance's with the Travelers are going straight to the rig, our medical people will evaluate them and then they will be charged and confined until the investigation is complete."

"Travelers." Ziz said with all kinds of connotations about discrimination against Romani people.

Miss Militia nodded then shook her head "They named themselves, you will have to ask them."

The bus full of people stirred and got through the waking process as they closed on Arcadia and pulled up in front of the gym. The panel truck went around the back.

Taylor looked around and snorted, then she walked to the door. The driver opened it and Taylor stepped down followed by Amy, Ziz and Clockblocker. She turned to Emily, who was in full battle rattle and opened her mouth. Before she got a word out a imposing grey hiared lady in a severe suit looked at Ziz "Miss Simurgh, Mary Mastersen, Youth Guard representative. I will be your advocate for your dealings with the PRT."

Taylor, everyone, as they were all flowing off the bus, all the busses, looked at the woman. Including Ziz who stepped behind Taylor and Amy. Taylor turned to Emily. Who sighed "There is some question as she is nine years old. However we were just discussing the fact that she is not now, nor has she ever been, a Ward, which leaves the Youth Guard with no jurisdiction in this case."

Clockblocker high fived Ziz "Lucky Zizzy!"

Julie darted in and grabbed him by his chin, turned his face to her and sealed her lips to his. Ziz broke the crowd up "Lucky Clocky."

Taylor rolled her eyes and walked off. Amy grinned and followed her, Ziz followed along like a duckling, nervously eyeing the Youth Guard rep. Taylor walked through the gym, looked at ZIz eyeing the floor and shook her head "We have a room in the annex, a studio, they play all kinds of ball games in here. Plus we have the studio at home."

Ziz nodded following along and then smiled "Home." That had a lot attached to it. Along with images of Taylors house, in the neural net those images went into detail on the defenses BT had built into the house with an air of approval.

Henni looked at Danny's face and snickered. He gave her a glare.

The team unloaded the panel truck after going out the back doors to the dock while the parents talked in the studio. Carol looked at Danny "We'll give everyone a ride. I have the Escalade. Your pickup is a normal cab."

Danny shrugged "Ziz maybe, Taylor has her ride here."

On the loading dock Vicky had had a thought along the same lines "Uh, Taylor, how is Ziz getting home?"

Emily looked at Carol, opened her mouth, and then clapped her mouth shut without speaking and glared when the floor and walls said "Stand by for Titanfall."

On the loading dock Taylor smiled "VanguardA6 Mod Five." She pointed at the line of Blue light going up from the empty service vehicle area.

An enormous titan slammed into the ground in an Iron Man pose then stood up. Ziz was vibrating in place. Vicky grinned "Noice landing. Stuck it."

Clockblocker sighed "Bullshit. Piggot is going to-"

"Well at least it isn't Piggy anymore." Clockblocker blushed furiously. Emily arched a brow at Taylor "We need to talk about giving an Endbringer an Endbringer young lady." Taylor grinned impishly as Ziz scampered to the titan and was snatched up and put in the cockpit.

"Not an Ogre?"

"Grrrr."

"Let me check you, that can't be good for your heart. Your face is red as a tomato." Amy said grabbing Emily's hand.

"You can't Lung me." Emily growled.

Amy grinned "Probably not, I mean I wouldn't, you can actually be reasoned with, but I kind of built you so I could just…." She left it hanging.

Taylor nodded "We wouldn't. It does give Ziz more credibility, and further separates her from the Simurgh, though."

"At the risk of ruining all of yours. Does BT approve of this? Of course he does. He's running an op isn't he? Damnit!"

Titanfall

Danny looked out the window at the PRT Damage Control officer, sort of insurance adjusters for the PRT, dealing with Jorgensen and smiled.

He turned to the gaggle of girls in the huge living room having settled from the tour. They were back to discussing bedroom arrangements. Riley, Sveta and Ziz were arguing about not taking Amy's room.

Ziz had a point, she didn't actually need a room, but she should have a space of her own. Looks like they were going to do an addition. Connect the garage maybe, well, extend and connect it. You could put two bedrooms and a bath in a second story there then, plus a workspace at the front of two car spaces. "I have a plan that does just that Danny."

"We're going to have to move back to the penthouse aren't we?"

"It is Operators Penthouse Danny. I will clear the schedule, it is stipulated in the lease agreements. I have alternate rooms for those guest who have it booked."

Henni shrugged "Plus Taylor and the pilots can do another dive and run on the idiots that are going to show up."

"Only the leakers the PRT and I miss." BT replied. Danny and Henni winced. Poor bastards.


	31. Chapter 31

Titanfall 31

Emily looked in the mirror. The girl's change to her hairstyle was better, just as easy to care for too really, which she would only admit under torture. Damn but Panacea did good work. This body was spectacular, better than when she had been in fighting trim even, and required very minimal maintenance, of course, next to dialysis, everything was minimal right, well, not chemo, but supposedly she would never find out about that now. "OK BT, what have you been up to overnight?"

The assassin pair, guard pair BT said, didn't even bother to cloak anymore, unless they were tracking a target, and Emily really couldn't be bothered. She had after all been in a military organization her whole life, not like she hadn't lived with males in the field, even in some small post. Plus he was very professional, machine like even. "Continuing the same operations as always Director. Nothing extraordinary to report."

Emily nodded "I like this agreement we reached after your little excursion against the nine. So still working psyops to get the Simurgh integrated. No new threats?"

"Surprisingly not Director. I personally expected much more resistance. Perhaps they are confounded by the continuing truce."

Emily looked at the full capability ball drone "Or Ziz is manipulating them."

"It is a possibility. I still have not detected her manipulating my systems, neither has Dragon, though we are we are using different methodologies to monitor for this in each other. We do not have a way to check villain systems, or their brains, without apprehending them."

Emily nodded looking in the mirror "Might be a good enough reason to get a few warrants. Not quite the anime proportions of the girl Panacea built for herself, but probably the best Ds I ever had, the best abs, eyes, legs, and ass too. Too bad."

"Taylor is correctly proportioned for her size, In the ninetieth percentile to be sure, but not out of the norm. I think it is her being slightly under two meters, one meter eighty eight centimeters, that prejudices people, especially females, as most are nearly a foot shorter than her. Why too bad Director? Your body as built, and as you have achieved with exercise, is very aesthetically pleasing. In the ninetieth percentile certainly, as compared to the available mean."

Emily blinked "Are you including all the porn on the internet in that mean determination?"

"Only the current adult actresses. Compared to the peers your age, you and one other person are the pinnacle of apparent aesthetical desirability, factoring in their income as the most reliable indicator of popularity."

"Did you just tell me I'm a MILF or the no children having equivalent, or that I am in the wrong business BT?"

"Cougar. Empirical evidence, based on income only, indicates you certainly are in the wrong field Director."

"I don't know whether that's gratifying or if I should hold you under water in the sink and toss in a blow dryer."

"That is not a reaction Danny has had before, very nice director."

"Hmmm, Danny Hebert. He is pretty tall. Plus he understands busy, so would probably be a lot of fun, if we could ever get our schedules to mesh. Henni would have Taylor kill me though."

"I would hate to lose you Director. Perhaps we could discuss your preferences in a partner and I could offer you some alternates?" BT replied.

Emily snorted, wiped her hands of the lotion she had been putting on and stepped into her panties "That drone any good with bra hooks? She shrugged into her bra.

"Taylor wears sports bras. I can work it out though."

"Well if you are going to be the man in my bathroom hook me. I notice you didn't deny your other half would kill me."

As BT unfolded the manipulators to hook her bra he said "Taylor wouldn't, unless severely provoked, and in the absence of any other method to reach her goal. I expect we could come up with multiple courses of action that did not involve killing you and having to train your replacement. You have become much more relaxed than I suspected you would."

Emily snorted "I got an Endbringer, two, three, fourteen maybe? Living in my region. I have a shitload of work to get done. Which the drones are helping with, a lot, thanks by the way. Hey speaking of drones, I have reports of them all the way into, well, everywhere at this point."

"I have built five thousand seven hundred and sixty general purpose drones, what people call ball drones, at this point. Similar numbers of other types, though they take significantly longer to deploy. Unless I have ball drones, new ones, drop them off on their way to their own deployment position.

"Using the GPS satellite coverage maps as a guide I have positioned them for full overlapping coverage, there are no terrain shadows in my coverage. This has necessitated forty eight drones on constant coverage in fixed positions, another forty-eight to relieve them for charging or refueling in a rotational arrangement and around three hundred total for terrain that was shadowed from those.

"Fortunately those three hundred can supplement others on the ground and be, relay nodes, for those with persons I have issued or assigned personal drones to.

"The large bodies of water required a similar arrangement. Though those have onboard reactors burning deuterium they harvest from the water. Those also have a good medium for connection to the crust so have sensing capability all the way through the planet."

Emily walked out of the bathroom, her trio of drones following along as she watched her shooter drone carefully. He was a bit clumsy, all he needed was a crayon to abuse her walls more than a toddler. "Which is of course exactly what you have them doing, moving other drones I mean. So where are they getting power?"

"Four hundred eighty volt power from distribution transformers charges them nicely in just a few seconds, I do keep records and pay for the power, to include the applicable taxes, in whatever jurisdictions they are in. In some cases Operator Industries has been forced to purchase and upgrade local utilities. Actually that is still ongoing, Public Utility boards are difficult to work through even for me. The ones in low orbit can harvest deuterium and safely run reactors. They swap into the oceans, while waiting on their changeovers they provide surface coverage of the oceans as they harvest deuterium. In austere conditions, or locations where there is no power grid, I have positioned drones with reactors as there is nearly always water somewhere and if there is water there is deuterium. It doesn't have to be clean water. They extend their time on orbit by capturing deuterium gas and reducing it."

"So that's an admission you are an international threat now, forty eight thermos nuclear devices in low orbit, so Taylor is as well. I should have those Boards rounded up, they are training you in how to manipulate governments."

"Providing polishing for local conditions perhaps. I already knew the theory. Perhaps if everything was not reduced to adversarial relationship Director? Not doing so would greatly assist in our search for a partner for you."

"Listen Bub, if I want a different man in my bathroom and bedroom I'll toss you out and find my own thank you very much." She looked at the smug ball drone, glared really.

BT informed her "Breakfast is ready Director." The three Clark Bots he kept on her had already started her breakfast.

Emily grunted. Her home being fully instrumented and having the drones was pretty handy. The legal people buying off on it was a surprise. She had thought it an obvious conflict of interest. Of course they made the ENE pay a paltry fee for drone support. Well paltry if you considered what the service would have cost from some organization like Toy Box.

Titanfall

Danny looked over the plans with the various colored pencil marks on them and smiled gently. Taylor and the girls had been busy. These were good suggestions too. It would make that space over the expanded garage a two bedroom apartment all on its own. A little cozy, but still a fine apartment for a young couple. Until their second kid. Uh, wait a minute. He looked up and sighed, Taylor was still in the shower and the kitchen was full of dance kids rearranging groceries and 'helping' cook breakfast for the whole herd of them. None were Taylor or Amy. Head firmly back in the sand thank you. 'Murica!

Titanfall

Amy grinned down at Taylor "Come on, shower, now that I finally got you to break a sweat."

"Phhttt! I was already sweaty from practice, so were you. I thought we would slow down with States tomorrow."

Amy shrugged then grinned "This, or practice? All those cameras, everyone is nervous, all of their debuts, or most of them. We kind of fucked up and made dance and cheer the go to sport. All the networks, ESPN even, are covering the States." She pulled Taylor to her feet giggling at her being all awkward and clumsy. She did that!

"Glad we could help? Who knew? I mean I would have thought they would still be on about Ziz hanging out. It's only been a day and they moved on?"

Amy nodded as she checked Taylor out to ensure the mod was all the way gone. That would never fit in a pair of french cuts like Taylor preferred. It was a shell and skirt day too. She grunted. "School. Don't know why we're going, the truce is still on and the attack is local. Plus Ziz going? Missy has lost her mind thinking they will admit her. I don't think they 'moved on' PHO is still blazing and the networks have some new story every thirty minutes mixed in with the rehashes of the stories they have already run."

"Yeah, the attack is in the hall bathroom, where Ziz is attacking my house with water, how does she manage to splash that much out of the shower?"

Amy laughed "No questions about why she is showering since she doesn't sweat? We will have to look into changing it to one of these glass walled jobs. Or at least putting her one like this in the apartment. BT made the whole house and everything in it water proof. Water, fire, radiation, other things I still don't understand proof as well, the house and everything in it could potentially weather a supernova."

"Which why? How come she is taking my apartment?"

"It's your whole house Babe. Ask Danny, he will tell you." Amy shrugged. They had had this discussion a bit already. Danny was firm in his 'girls needing space of their own' argument though. She got on with checking the rest of Taylor in the shower. Those people on the net were just jealous. Taylor was perfectly proportioned. And she had stopped growing now. Now it was all just, solidifying maybe? Now if she would stop growing herself in an inch or so they would fit together perfectly. She would have to get Riley and Betty to check her.

Titanfall

Meredith watched the morning show, with its obligatory thumping bass beat dance piece from some other school as they showcased their, or one of their, pieces. These were pretty good. They might give the girls a run for their money. She focused, Kissimmee Florida? There actually was such a place? Kesha, tik tok. Hmm, maybe the Youth Guard needed a push at that. That was a pretty rude dance too.

She turned back to her email and updates. Emily was going to have to be made the Deputy Chief Director for real if she kept on. East North East was the most settled of the Directorates and it had the most reason to be unsettled. How was Central South West having this much trouble? The whole freaking region was dessert for gods sake! The population was half of ENE and it wasn't a high population density directorate, not like New York, Chicago, or LA.

Titanfall

Legend snorted as Alexandria rocketed down from where she could no longer breath to right on top of the emerging S class threat in the Painted Desert. He cruised over as she picked herself up "You are going to knock all these balancing rocks down and have to put them all back up."

Alexandria huffed and looked down at the unconscious parahuman, Coyote he had called himself. "And here I thought you would be bitching about me just whacking him."

Legend looked pointedly at the column of women and children chained together at the ankle Coyote, or the former Coyote perhaps, had been marching through the valley. Coyote groaned. Legend blinked. Alexandria shrugged "Brute, nine maybe." She pulled him up and punched him in the head twice.

Legend shook his head "Was maybe, now with his brain scrambled?" He shrugged and dialed the number for the local directorate of the PRT.

Titanfall

The principle of Arcadia glared at the Youth Guard Rep "Socialization, OK. How about you Socialize my PTA and the Board of Education?"

Mary Mastersen arched a brow "We will be continuing to engage the Board of Education to remind them of the law requiring children be educated to the age of sixteen. As for the PTA, we have prepared a infocall for them for you to send out on your auto dialer."

Principle Schaeffer nodded "And what are you going to do about her brother the truant? I mean if it has been decided she is nine?"

"Miss Simurgh is currently residing in the United States. Mister Leviathan is currently residing in international waters with a temporary residence in Japan. He is being discussed by the relevant organizations in Japan. As he is mute that appears to require special education arrangements."

Principle Schaeffer nodded "You realize there is the possibility that being this 'woke', as the kids say, could be carried so far as to detrimentally effect the general population correct? In this particular case, to the point of getting my students and staff killed, or driven insane?"

"Are we going to have a problem Mister Schaeffer? That is exactly the attitude I was not expecting from an educator."

Matthew Schaeffer tossed his hands up. Then he grinned "She should be in the elementary school."

Mary Mastersen nodded "It has been considered. In the document you will find some guidelines to ensure gifted students advanced ahead of their age peers are not abused by the older children."

Matt blinked "Have you people been checked for Master or Stranger effects by the PRT?"

Mary frowned "Daily."

Matt sighed "Fine. Placement testing first. What's another out parahuman, even another S class, when I have one in the school already and another who is not out, sort of."

Mary nodded "Miss Hebert and Miss Dallon. I also wanted to discus them with you and review what procedures the school is using to supervise underage persons in relationships."

Matt picked up the phone "Gladys, get the lawyers down here."

Mary sighed, it was going to be another one of those days. And she still had the athletic association to get to.

Titanfall

Emily took her seat behind her desk and turned on her monitor. Which immediately lit up in a lurid flashing red from so many priority notices they filled the screen. She paged back to the oldest of them and started working through the crisis. She read it, blinked and looked at the others. Then grinned "So Mary got an early start today." She chuckled as the alerts got more and more strident and less and less verbose. She got on the phone herself.

Titanfall

Claude picked up his phone "Good Morning Director, yes we are aware, I have sent a team. I was wondering if I could borrow Sergeant Washington?"

"Yes ma'am Overwhelming force ma'am. Yes ma'am I will owe the squad lunch."

Titanfall

Taylor looked at Ziz looking at the pool "Well, uh, maybe? I mean they got you in school and on the team. But isn't he still in Japan? Plus I'm not sure he could be on the swim team at whatever school he goes to? The NCAA has some interesting rules about parahuman abilities, and his are water right? Yours aren't exactly dance or cheer. The Youth Guard pointed out yours are even a disability as you see the future more than the present." Ziz scowled "Ha! don't mean mug. She is a scary lady, but she helped you. You might need to thank her even. Now come on, lets get you in a racer back and see what you can do. Volleyball is probably out after that divot you had to fix in the gym floor. Maybe beach with Jenny and I. Not like you aren't taller than me even."

Ziz looked sheepish then pouted.

Amy blinked as the plans for a floor Ziz could play volleyball on flowed into her head. She looked at Taylor who was nodding and shrugged "Not my area, BT can check them?"

"Duracrete, TM." Ziz supplied.

Janice, still tagging along with the group as it was after class clapped like a little girl. Amy frowned "But how would you play away?"

"All the schools!"

Taylor blinked "Uh, better run that past the Board and the Association. PRT too. I'm sure the schools wouldn't mind a supernova proof defended volleyball court room thing though. Wait, are you already doing that to Arcadia tonight? Oh man. No, we have to get Permission first Ziz. You already did it to all the buildings your rebuilt all over the place. You used BTs plans, so did Leviathan and Behemoth. The buildings defence systems are working off local laws. Oh man. Oh, non lethal first like home. Well, that's good?"

Ziz nodded grinning "Home!" Taylor rolled her eyes and pulled her to the locker room. Katy, grinning like a monkey, got out the suits she thought would fit Ziz.

Titanfall

Amy looked at Taylor lying on the bed in her room, with the door open, they were making some concessions to parents Henni had suggested. She giggled "Anatomically correct Ziz is freaking you out."

Taylor nodded "A bit. Who would want a period if they didn't have to have one?"

Amy rolled around the bed laughing like a maniac. She finally managed "I don't think she is that correct Babe."

Taylor nodded absently "Plus, who is she going to, uh, well, you know."

Amy laughed as Taylor pouted over her laughing. Amy kissed her after she got control again "Sorry. Not sure she is even going to have a period Babe. As for the rest, well she is nine. Maybe its puberty for her species? Lots going on there. Riley, Betty, and I are still working on it."

Riley walked in and flopped on the bed. "I'm with you Aunty T. I don't get it either."

Amy grinned at her "You will."

"Ugh, puberty sucks. I can skip it."

Amy shook her head "Don't even try it missy."

The other girls, including Ziz flowed into the room and Danny got up and closed his door. Henni, stretched out on his bed snorted "Coward." Danny nodded rapidly. Henni sighed "You know that means I have to talk to them. Put those puppy eyes away Mister. God, who were you going to get to talk to them? Lacey? Oh man, that's a bad plan. Lacey is so, so."

Danny shrugged "Lacey?"

Henni nodded "You know, that little witch might have set us up just to avoid all of this."

Danny scowled "She doesn't have kids. You might be right."

Henni nodded thoughtfully "That could be fixed."

Danny blanched "Girls play rough."

Henni waved him off "She isn't forty yet, the Union is working again, now's the time." Danny blinked.


	32. Chapter 32

Titanfall 32

Lacey contemplated Danny, then Taylor, then Henni. She huffed and slumped in her seat in the arena. The kids were still in the giant tent in the parking lot. Clark bots with giant rifles and ball drones watched the crowds. The very respectful crowd. Not something unexpected as thirteen Titans stood around the floor of the Arena where the competition was going to occur. One of them truly enormous.

She looked around the top row, Media booths jammed completely full. Foreign media even. Under them VIP or corporate booths fuller than she had ever seen them. On the floor Armsmaster and a dozen PRT geeks in lab coats handling what had to be fifteen thousand pounds of sensors and equipment.

All of this and it was round one of the ten county, so ten competitor, well, fifteen if you counted the diocese or parochial schools, State competition. They would down select today after two minutes in each type of event, dance, cheer, all the types of dance really, ballet, hip hop, modern, freestyle, and then tomorrow would be much longer routines from four competitors.

The giant four sided monitor above their heads was a picture in picture of Arcadia, so Rockingham counties, warm up. The tent had the Arcadia team as well as Immaculata in it. Hey what were the other schools doing for a warm up area?

Shit this was nerve wracking. Did she want to put herself through this? Sure as she had a daughter her big sister Taylor would take her over. And along with Taylor came a host, a literal fucking host, of normal and parahumans. Fucking Henni! It wouldn't be better for a boy either. He would be a three season athlete or a fucking spelling, math and science bee competitor, maybe all of that. Which all held their competitions here, of course. Though the place was a giant echo chamber then, not a standing room only fifty thousand seat rock concert. Damn!

Fucked if Henni wasn't right though. And Taylor was specfuckingtacular. Plus Amy was right there and had already checked her and Kurt. Hell tuned them up even. Little witch. Everyone Taylor knew got a tune up. Now Betty and Riley were getting in on the act.

Phhttt Aunt Riley. 'Yeah my aunt is Bonesaw, so you got something to say?' Lacey sighed, then the punches or mazer fire would start. Fucking Henni! And Kurt! The fuck was still sitting there with that shit eating grin he had gotten when Henni had brought it up. Not even the decency to look terrified like Danny did. Hey wait a minute! "Danny! You don't think I can raise a kid?" Danny put his face in his hands. Lacey turned to Henni "And you. How about a sister for Taylor." Lacey blinked at the smirk from Henni and groan from Danny. "Well, OK then. Now shhh here we go." She nodded to the floor.

On the floor a white haired gentleman in a tux had stepped to the center of the sprung floor as the PRT had cleared off. Armsmaster had nodded and a microphone lowered from the four sided giant TV "Let's get ready to rumble!" In a deep resonate voice. He drew out the rumble. Everyone sat up and looked at each other for a minute. As the base beat came in and then with Arcadia taking the floor he introduced them like professional fighters as Low played with the lyrics appearing on the jumbotrons. The crowd roared them. It was shattering. Somehow the announcer's voice was audible as he read the names and each member of the team danced out and then to the corner he had sent them too.

Silence fell and then the announcer introduced Lancaster Central High schools Wildcats to Hollaback Girl. They had won, lost maybe, the toss and were in the time slot up against the 'home' team. Arcadia roared the song and cheered them madly. The Wildcats beamed at them. They had already met most of them as Amy, Betty, and Riley, along with several medical professionals checked them. Amy and the others keeping it from being invasive. The Wildcats were a bit infatuated and determined to show as well as possible.

As the announcer read of some rules and cautioned the audience about behavior, rather ruefully as the crowd was really amped up, in the media booths the commentators got ready and did the last of their pieces to camera. Then ABC ran their old Wide World of Sports lead in, which appeared on the jumbotron with updated video from dance competitions. The agony of defeat section being a flyer with a broken leg sobered everyone right up. As compound fractures do really.

The introduced the judges and the teams left the floor as the lights dimmed. Then some music came up and Arcadia JV Cheer took the floor. The crowd roared.

Titanfall

"Colin, are you watching the competition?" Dragon asked with a smile in her voice. She knew, very well, what was on his HUD.

"External Security is very tight. We had little time to deeply vet all these dancers however."

Dragon nodded in another image in his HUD and the suit beside him "Yes, I think BT probably won't have much trouble with school children though. Especially as the titans are within feet of the floor. And yourself as well. You can look with your eyes though."

"The cameras provide a synergized view, really the best seat in the house is the floor and flying camera feed. Perhaps better than Uber and Leets snitch even."

Dragon nodded again tracking the snitch. Uber and Leet were in a booth with Tattletale. Rune and Shadow Stalker were up near the ceiling orbiting on a sheet of armor plate painted flat black. Hellhound and a pack of dogs was wandering in the crowd with Assault and Battery as her escorts. Sveta and Riley were in their titans. "The chatter dropped to essentially zero."

Armsmaster grunted "And that is why I am worried." Dragon nodded, she and BT were as well.

Titanfall

Mondays PRT Leadership teleconference meeting found a smiling Emily. Director Armstrong snorted "M and S for you East North East. What has you so happy?"

Director Treviso from East South East groaned "I get the next Simurgh attack."

Director Wilson from New York barked a laugh "Be glad, At least you don't have buildings growing out of the ground and hooking themselves to the power grid that is improving itself. Buildings that confoam people trying to break into them? Did I miss a meeting? Where the hell are they getting water towers full of confoam components? You know the City government is in a panic. They had all that open space they have been infighting over for years, now the owners have the buildings back. Panic might actually be too mild a word. Open warfare in City Hall is more like it. Not sure it wasn't better when the Elite had most of them in its pocket."

Meredith nodded "Speaking of normal," she waited on the rueful laugh to die down "We will be pulling Strike teams and Protectorate Members from Brockton Bay beginning at the end of this week. As it is they have a few more things to investigate, but East North East has become the most settled region and we really need to get on with this new normal."

One of the Directors from the Plains regions nodded "The new normal being Parahumans turning themselves in and the investigations that go with all of that. Along with dirty PRT Personnel and two Protectorate members."

The Director to his north nodded "And helping the local Police investigate the ones that turn themselves in to them after checking them for Simurgh effects."

Emily nodded "My thinker has looked at the reports. She doesn't think that is all. She thinks some of them are disappearing. Plus there has been a significant increase in Law Enforcement finding bodies."

Meredith nodded "Which upon investigation, have so far been serial killers, rapist, and violent pedophiles. Interesting, the evidence appears with them, but not ultimately in our purview for the most part."

Emily nodded "The Triumvirate is continuing their reign of terror."

Meredith nodded "They have scaled back to those with kill orders however."

Director Armstrong looked at Emily "What does Tattletale say about Eidolon? Hunch has, well, a hunch."

Emily shrugged "That his power made the Endbringers, or called them rather. They were already made. As reported from our debriefings with Ziz, there are twenty of them that she knows of. Obviously not all of them could be here, as there wouldn't be a planet anymore, whether from their effects or BT doing something permanent to them. We don't really have the facility to check other worlds but apparently only the three are active. Though even Ziz gets suspicious about the time manipulating one. It's a bit of a prankster apparently."

Director Treviso shook his head "Great, a troll Endbringer. Although to me that means I could wake up and all of this will have been a dream."

Meredith tapped a part of her desk and a report came up on the conference. Emily nodded "Unknown Parahuman from Concord. He tried to be a bit forceful with Operator."

"When will he be whole enough to go to the asylum, I mean really, he has to be mad?" Armstrong asked.

Emily nodded "Our thoughts as well. He is in a cell, whole, for a given value of whole. Panacea turned him into what my scientist tell me is an amphibian. Or his power did when she was trying to turn him into a frog. He already had some aspects, the slight green tinge of his skin and jumping ability for example. Now he has gills, or rather the things salamanders have. He seems pleased actually. We are waiting on his psychological workup. His parents apologized profusely. Anyway, Panacea cured him of the ruptured testicle Kim Song gave him."

Armstrong nodded "And Hot Saw?"

Emily snorted "Ninety seven pounds of pissed off Asian dancer does not a parahuman make, no matter what the PHO boards are opining. She isn't a Parahuman. She doesn't remember a trigger event. She is just a mover zero. half of those blows were her kicking him, along with punching him."

Armstrong frowned "Ninety seven? That's a bit high, girl is tiny. Gravity manipulation could account for that, a shaker maybe? Was she scanned?"

Emily shook her head "She declined, besides she is very definitely in Operators camp. No way to force her either, clearly defense of others, Yes, muscle is apparently heavier than fat. As she appears to be all muscle, organs, and bones..." Emily shrugged.

Meredith nodded "Its still assault. And with that tongue of his its assault with a parahuman power. He goes to the barracks. Perhaps the one in Kansas though. I have reviewed the video. I don't like that look Ziz had on her face. BT only didn't vaporize him because he had jumped in the middle of that crowd of girls and Hot Saw was all over him."

Emily shrugged "We will try to get the prosecutor to release the case to us. As it was televised and he is over eighteen it's a bit of an issue. They want to try him as an adult and add a sexual assault charge. As it is the team is disqualified as they hadn't listed any parahumans, they had already not made the cut. Lancaster Central and Arcadia dominated. Lancaster Central being the runner-up was a bit of a surprise all around really. That team is most of the kids in their school and the rest are in support for the team, wardrobe, props, music, all of that. Still they get a trip to Disney and apparently get to hang out with Arcadia's team on weekends for joint practices.

Immaculata took the parochial division but really that wasn't a surprise. Though Arcadia and Lancaster leading the crowd in cheering for them was interesting. Concord Catholic, the senior parochial school from the capitol, certainly didn't appreciate it much. Especially the Arcadia band being in the crowd and doing that flash mob band thing."

Creek, The plains region director nodded "Probably like that with all their teams and play iron man ball. The same eleven guys play both sides of the ball. All these small towns are like that."

"OK, last issue for East North East, Yoda and Bookmaker? While they aren't out, their act while the floor was reset certainly got everyone's attention." Meredith tapped another spot and a different report came up.

Emily nodded "Good rapport with Miss Militia, their parents as well. Operator sort of folded them into her group. They scare the crap out of the former Empire and frustrate Tattletale no end. Registered associates for now, maybe Wards later."

Titanfall

Taylor looked at the tight phalanx of girls and drones and rolled her eyes. "He hit me in the cheek with his tongue."

"Grrrrrrrrrrrrr."

She sighed at the synchronous growl from Amy and Song. "So going to take a while to wear off then."

"Grrrrrrrrrrrrr."

Taylor tossed up her hands.

Titanfall

"So she can be touched at least." Animos watched the news segment again.

Hemorraghia and Vex leaned away from him and the arrow took him right through the body pinning him to the chair he had been sitting in in the living room of the house they had taken.

Titanfall

Mother Mathers watched the news and contemplated what they should do. Obviously they needed to find out if this was really the Simurgh. White Hair, Pale skin, super brute, but she didn't make the joyful noise. The Crowley's and McVeigh's were all but wiped out. Even the Mathers clan had taken pretty severe hits. She needed to get someone close. A female though? These girls seemed to let anyone in, as long as they were female. Young girls were like that. They were much more selective in the boys they kept company with. Hmm. Jimmy Wayne had those twins. A boy and a girl. They were about the right age. Good power set too. Master, not very high rated but getting better, and a Stranger that could project her power. Might take a long con and those two were smart and didn't have a record.

She spat into the spittoon beside her cane bottom rocker and looked at her son "Go get me Jimmy Wayne's youngest Elijah."

Valefor shuddered, those two would be fucking, each other or somebody else, like always. He had told Jimmy Wayne. The idiot had laughed, made some comment about increasing the flock. Plus they were fucking vicious and would be damn near impossible to find. He would have to bribe them out again. With their momma run off like she had they had run wild. It was a mistake to send them too. They still had that damn movie in their heads Inglourious Basterds, how the fuck they had gotten that bootleg copy of an Aleph film was beyond him. 'Cousin, Business is a boomin' from Jane. Standing there naked as the day she was born with her brother passed out naked on the bed. How did she think she was Brad Pitt. Her brother Carl Wayne? Maybe, that boy was so pretty. But one of them was a girl for Simurgh's sake, though she didn't think so apparently, and Brockton Bay was full of Nazi's. "I can take someone and go Momma."

"What did I say Elijah?"

"Yes Ma'am."

Titanfall

"Song is waiting us out."

Amy looked at Taylor after her comment and grinned "Might not be as long a wait as she thinks."

"Oh my god Amy! What the hell has gotten into you? I told you the first day we met."

"Second I think, maybe third. So you don't like her Taylor?"

"Uh, no, well, I like her. I don't like like her though."

Amy looked at her and giggled, then rolled around on the bed laughing. She sat up eventually. "It's like middle school." Taylor huffed. "OK, adult time for a minute, the Teeth and the Fallen?"

Taylor shrugged "The Teeth seem to be whacking each other. The Fallen are really just the Mathers now. BT is watching them. This girl, Jane, skeeves me out though."

Amy nodded "Yeah, A mini Aldo Raine? More a problem for the Nazi's than us maybe. We'll have to talk to Yoda and Bookmaker. Let's see what Miss All American Soldier makes of a wampa and some ackley."

Taylor snickered "Shadow Stalker hates those things."

"Is terrified of them you mean. I thought she was going to pee in her pants when those ones clambered up in the rafters." Amy grinned. She still had a bit of a grudge against Shadow Stalker and couldn't get to her. Taylor had apparently put it behind her. Which was fine. Good even. Some time in the barracks in no way made up for torturing her girlfriend into triggering. Permanently locked in her shadow form with a solar panel hooked to her head was a good idea though. Now she just needed to work with Riley a bit more to understand how to do it for sure.

"Nice of your mom to let you stay here when you are grounded."

"Well, she had to do something, I mean I was trying to turn that guy into a frog. Song beating the shit out of him and his power wanting him to be some kind of Amphibian were a little much for me with you wiping the slime off and retching."

"He must eat like dead flies It smelled horrible." Taylor scowled.

"Hot Saw." Amy snickered.

"The Operator team Shot caller." They both laughed.

Danny leaned on the open door frame "Laugh it up funny girls. Lung called her that." The girls sobered and he nodded.

Taylor was thoughtful a moment "Ryuu likes her so it's probably OK. She can always step on her dad."

Amy agreed "Literally, or jump across most of Asia town and land on him. Plus I can still drop him."

Henni leaned on Danny "Matchmaker apparently thinks she is too young. And too Operator."

Taylor nodded then grinned "So Aunt Lacey?"

Henni pushed off of Danny and came and sat on the bed. Danny fled. He knew a girl talk huddle when he saw one. In his bedroom he asked "The Mathers? The Teeth?"

The ball drone roll nodded "Under observation, unless I lose them they won't be a problem, they wouldn't be much of a problem then, and I have updated the drones issued to the family to sense strangers. The Master is slightly worrying but only slightly, I run the check program continuously. The Butcher can be put in orbit, the device is ready. After that the rest of the Teeth are a law enforcement issue. One I am already working on."

"We talked about the sun."

"Perhaps another star Danny, I am not yet ready to evacuate this planet in case a parahuman power destabilized it and sent it nova."

"You can't believe all that stuff on the tinfoil hat forums BT."

"Some of the theories have surprising amounts of thought and until we prove them one way or the other I would prefer to err on the side of caution, at least for another two hundred and eleven days."

"Wow, an ark in less than a year. Nice work BT."


End file.
